Texas Game Warden notes: Cheerleading can’t get you out of DWI - Houston Chronicle

October 01, 2019 at 03:43AM

If the physical agility of a cheerleader could take place of walking in a straight line during a field sobriety test, this man would walk free.

One man in Montgomery County was spotted driving erratically by a Texas Game Warden on patrol and tried to perform his school's well-known cheer to get out of it, wardens said.

That's just one wild story from the Texas Game Wardens highlighted in the Texas Department of Parks and Wildlife field notes.

From illegal snake hunters to a fumbling pothead, see the best calls and interactions had by game wardens across the state in the gallery above.

Jay R. Jordan covers breaking news in the Houston area. Read him on our breaking news site, Chron.com, and our subscriber site, HoustonChronicle.com | Follow him on Twitter at @JayRJordan | Email him at jay.jordan@chron.com

<b>From Cheer to Fear</b> While on the way to patrol the San Jacinto River, a Montgomery County game warden observed a vehicle driving erratically toward a bridge near the river. The vehicle voluntarily pulled into the same area beside the road as the warden. After approaching the vehicle, the warden noticed several beer cans in the passenger's side floor board. The driver, who was the only occupant in the vehicle, denied drinking the ice-cold beer. The warden began a field sobriety test and when instructed for the hand coordination test, the driver began doing a high school cheer. When asked to do the breathalyzer to prove they hadn't been drinking, the driver refused. When asked why they wouldn't do it, the driver said,

<b>It Wasn't Me</b> A Navarro County game warden was checking a group of hunters after hearing shots coming from a nearby field. As the warden began to check the group, one of the hunters disappeared. After a quick search, the warden found the missing hunter lying face down in a field of tall grass. The warden asked the hunter if they had any luck, to which they replied they were just lying in the field. About six inches away from the hunter's hands was a shotgun on the ground. When the warden asked about it, the hunter said they were watching the shotgun for someone else. Near his feet was a box of shotgun shells and a stool commonly used by bird hunters. The hunter continued to say they hadn't been hunting. Questioning continued for a short time and the individual finally admitted the obvious, they had been hunting. The individual has never possessed a Texas hunting license.

<b>Blame the Dog</b> A Lubbock County game warden received a call from someone who had their roof peppered by dove hunters. The warden went to the location and found three dove hunters with dove scattered over a concrete slab in a pile. When asked which dove belonged to each hunter, the group claimed they didn't know and blamed it on their dog for scattering and displacing the dove, some of which were still alive. Upon further investigation, the warden learned that one hunter claimed 10 doves, the second claimed seven doves, leaving the third hunter as the owner of the remaining 17 doves. The hunter continued to blame the dog. Citations were issued for over the daily bag limit and civil restitutions. The dove were seized and donated.

<b>Making Waves</b> Shortly after sunset one Saturday in June while patrolling Lake Granbury, game wardens came upon a boat adrift on the water without the required navigation lights on and no occupants visible. As the wardens got closer, they observed two naked occupants onboard engaged in intimate activities. Recognizing they'd been spotted, the male occupant started the boat and began driving away despite numerous commands to stop. Once contact was made, both occupants were found to be highly intoxicated. Field sobriety tests were administered to the driver, who was subsequently arrested for boating while intoxicated.

<b>Back-tracked and Busted</b> A Tyler County game warden got a call from a hunting lease operator stating he had confronted several subjects trespassing on his lease. The warden responded and began cold trailing sets of ATV tracks leading off the property. After following the tracks through several adjacent properties the warden came upon some individuals in a wooded property who were working on an ATV. After waiting for backup from the county sheriff's office, the warden made contact and initiated arrests for criminal trespass. During an inventory search, the warden discovered various narcotics and paraphernalia and additional charges were added. Cases are pending.

<b>Got Caught Fishing</b> Polk County game wardens recently observed an individual walking away from the shoreline with fishing poles and bait bucket in hand. The individual was not in possession of any required identifying information, became agitated and was placed in temporary detention for officer safety. During a pat down search for weapons, the individual cautioned the wardens to be aware he had dirty syringes in his pockets. In addition to the dirty needles, wardens found various illegal narcotics and paraphernalia. After getting his identification, wardens also discovered two state jail felony warrants out of Polk County for burglary. The subject was arrested and cases are pending.

<b>Eyes in the Sky to the Rescue</b> Late one night, Coleman County game wardens responded to an emergency search and rescue call regarding two missing kayakers on the Colorado River. The Coleman County Sheriff's Office pinged one of the kayakers' phones and obtained an approximate starting point location of where they might be. Using the game wardens' UAV search and rescue drone, wardens were able to locate the kayakers on a remote bank of the river at 1:30 a.m. The wardens hiked to the kayakers and guided them off the river.

<b>End of a Long Tail</b> Texans don't abide cheaters, particularly in their fishing tournaments. An individual was recently sentenced to jail time, restitution of nearly $3,000, suspension of his fishing license for a year and banishment from fishing in tournaments after he was caught cheating. The court decision was the culmination of a game warden investigation into bass fishing tournament fraud on Decker Lake in Travis and Bastrop counties. The individual used a unique sleight of hand during a catch-and-release kayak fishing event that used photos taken by contestants out on the water of their catches placed on a measuring board, with the angler having the most inches of bass in the aggregate declared the winner. Upon inspection of the violator's vessel, a cut tail of a bass was found in the paddle well of the kayak. The violator initially stated he found the cut tail in the reeds and was taking it to shore to turn it in. Later the violator confirmed to have used the tail to place over another bass, using his hand to cover the questionable area, to make the fish look longer, on multiple occasions.

<b>A Repeat Offender</b> While checking bank fishermen along the East Fork of the Trinity River near Forney, a game warden approached a group of three individuals he observed fishing. An inspection of their catch revealed undersized catfish as small as 6 inches in length and undersized white bass, as well as game fish being used for bait. During an explanation of the regulations, one of the men became increasingly belligerent toward the warden. When told that he was going to receive a citation he grew even more agitated and refused to give his name. The game warden then attempted to place the subject under arrest for failure to ID, but the man pulled away and was taken to the ground. The subject was charged with fishing without a license, failure to ID, and resisting arrest. At the jail, three warrants out of Dallas County were discovered, two of which were for resisting arrest.

<b>Oh, Deer!</b> A Hill County game warden acting on a tip paid a visit to a residence and located two white-tailed deer fawns being held in an enclosure on the property. It was later determined that the fawns had been found in Arkansas and transported to Texas. The fawns were seized and turned over for disease testing. Charges are pending for Interstate Transport of White-Tailed Deer to Texas without Authorization and Possession Live Game Animal.

If the physical agility of a cheerleader could take place of walking in a straight line during a field sobriety test, this man would walk free.

One man in Montgomery County was spotted driving erratically by a Texas Game Warden on patrol and tried to perform his school's well-known cheer to get out of it, wardens said.

That's just one wild story from the Texas Game Wardens highlighted in the Texas Department of Parks and Wildlife field notes.

From illegal snake hunters to a fumbling pothead, see the best calls and interactions had by game wardens across the state in the gallery above.

<b>Be Very, Very Quiet; We're Hunting Snakes</b> Late one evening, two Trinity County game wardens noticed a truck driving slowly near Alabama Creek Wildlife Management Area. After following the suspicious vehicle for a while, the truck stopped on a bridge and one of the passengers began shining a spotlight out of the windows. The wardens watched the vehicles for a few miles, then initiated a traffic stop. Six people were in the truck, along with snake capture bags, a bucket marked for venomous snakes and snake catch poles. The wardens advised them of the hunting rules and regulations and cited them for the appropriate charges including hunting reptiles from the roadway.

<b>(Expired) License to Kill</b> On the morning of Sept. 1, two Trinity County game wardens were on patrol when they heard a group of hunters constantly shooting. The wardens located the area and found six individuals hunting in an area baited with milo. When they asked the hunters for their licenses, two hunters said they left it at home, another bought a license three months prior. The wardens informed the hunters that new licenses had only been on sale for two weeks. Several cases were filed, and 36 doves were seized.

<b>Boat Karaoke Fail</b> Over the July 4th holiday weekend, Angelina County game wardens were on patrol for water safety violations at Sam Rayburn Reservoir when they got a call from a concerned fisherman about a large center console boat occupied by several intoxicated people singing at the top of their lungs, and a child not wearing a life jacket. The wardens made the long run up the lake, found the boat underway and made contact with the operator. After failing field sobriety tests, the operator was arrested for boating while intoxicated, the child was placed in a life jacket, and the merry occupants were escorted ashore. Case is pending.

<b>Wardens Catch Up to East Texas Poaching Ring</b> Game wardens in Smith and Wood counties recently put a halt to a massive poaching network involving 12 individuals responsible for the illegal killing of at least 28 white-tailed deer and 50 feral hogs. The investigation began in February with information about a deer that had been shot off a county road at night. Game wardens conducted several interviews and soon learned this was not an isolated incident. In fact, it was just the tip of the iceberg. By the summer, investigators had documented evidence that a dozen subjects collectively committed more than 600 violations during the last two years, ranging in severity from Class C misdemeanors to State Jail felonies. All the deer and hogs had been killed on private property at night; shot from public roadways with the aid of spotlights. The dead animals were left to rot where they fell. Cases are pending.

<b>No Fame, No Shame</b> Just before midnight back in July, a Van Zandt County game warden approached three individuals as they were wrapping up their night of fishing on the Sabine River. The warden asked if they had any luck and after a long pause and some blank stares one of the individuals spoke up and said they did well. The warden had them open their ice chest, which contained 27 striped and hybrid bass, 12 over their limit. All three individuals were cited for over their daily bag limits. On a side note, all three individuals claimed to be huge fans of the Texas game warden TV show

<b>Feeling Green</b> Two game wardens from Montgomery County and San Jacinto County were patrolling the highway when they saw an oncoming car swerving from their lane. The wardens pursued the vehicle when it immediately lost control swerving into a ditch, overcorrected back onto the highway spinning 360-degrees and came to a stop on the same lane it originally departed. The wardens approached the vehicle to check on the operator, who was extremely shaken up. As the driver exited the vehicle, a faint odor of marijuana drifted from the car. The wardens escorted the driver to the side of the road to avoid traffic. The driver grabbed his abdomen claiming nausea from the spin but doing so caused the sound of crumpling paper. Wardens asked the individual to raise his hands away from his waist and they found a large paper sack full of marijuana tucked into his beltline. The operator of the vehicle said the bag was originally under his seat, but it slid forward under the pedals causing the reckless driving. The individual was placed under arrest for possession of marijuana.

<b>At Least He Can Take a Bath Again</b> A Henderson County game warden received a call recently with information about a man who had posted a video of a small alligator in his bathtub on Snapchat. The individual was also a suspect in a local illegal hunting incident that took place in January involving a large fallow deer rumored to have been shot from the road. The warden made contact with the individual, who admitted to possessing the alligator and agreed to a meeting where he would hand it over. The warden recovered the three-foot-long alligator, which was later released back into the wild. The suspect also admitted to shooting the fallow deer from the road and told the warden where he had stashed the antlers. The antlers were recovered, and citations were issued for the offenses.

<b>If Only They Were All This Easy</b> While investigating complaints of several deer camps having been broken into in Polk County, wardens spotted a familiar vehicle parked along a creek they had observed coming off another back road late the previous night. Upon closer inspection, the wardens observed in plain sight a spotlight and a .22 rifle inside the truck and a small pool of dried blood on the tailgate. After making contact, one warden asked if the two individuals remembered seeing them the night before. One guy responded, yes, and asked why the wardens were following them. The warden let him know they had been trailing them for some time. At that point the warden expected the man to admit to hunting feral hogs, which would be legal at night on private property with permission, but instead he informed them they had shot a deer. The clueless poachers also implicated themselves on several other poaching incidents and violations, and led the wardens to the area where they conducted the illegal activities. Upon arrival, the subjects showed where they dumped the carcass and where they stored the meat at their grandmother's house. The shooter later stated that his daddy and granddaddy were questioned by wardens back in the day, but never got caught in the act, claiming that the apple doesn't fall too far from the tree. Uh, huh. Multiple charges pending.

<b>The Pool is Closed</b> An Abilene game warden received information about a family in Hamlin possessing an alligator. The concerned citizen stated that he saw photos posted on Snapchat. The warden drove to the suspect's house, asked if he could see the alligators, and was led to the back yard where he discovered five baby alligators in a small swimming pool. The warden seized the alligators and took them to the Abilene Zoo for holding until arrangements could be made. Case is pending further investigation.

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