Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 4834 AMERICAN POLICE BEAT: MAY 2016 It’s worse than burning the flag Thanks to a lot of very effective propaganda, egregious environmental crimes barely register I n this issue of Ameri- can Police Beat, we’ve got an article from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service talking about the im- portant work these officers perform every day. But it’s easy for that work to be glossed over or ignored because people are more interested in reading about violent crime and terror- ism. However, it’s hard to ar- gue with the fact that we need Fish and Wildlife of- ficers now more than ever considering the fact that an individual or group appears to be targeting our national bird – the bald eagle. According to CBS News, local authorities are current- ly investigating the deaths of five bald eagles in Dela- ware. Just a matter of weeks before, more than a dozen were found dead in Mary- land. The cowardly culprits might be using poison. A Maryland man recent- ly found a bald eagle he thought was sick. He called the Department of Natural Resources. “At the time, a single bird didn’t raise any red flags,” said Sgt. John McDerby, with the Division of Fish & Wildlife Natural Resources Police. “Little bit later that morn- ing, another officer received a call that there were eight eagles on the ground and some of them seemed to be in distress.” Five of those eight eagles are dead. Three are being treated at a rescue facility but might not make it. Law enforcement pro- fessionals are frequently most disturbed emotion- ally by what they see on the job when the victims are helpless – like kids and old people. In the air or on the hunt these magnificent creatures have almost nothing to fear. But if someone decides to kill a bunch of eagles using poison, they’re as helpless as ducklings. “It was really devastating to our officers,” said Sgt. McDerby. “Here in the business of protecting wildlife to see 13 dead eagles in a field is pretty hard to take. I think it’s too early in an investiga- tion to try and make any kind of guess if things are related. At this time we are investigating it as a separate incident.” And you don’t have to be Fish and Wildlife or an environmental police officer to get involved. U.S Fish and Wildlife is now offering a $25,000 reward to anyone who can lead to the person or per- sons who killed the birds in Maryland. To pray you open your whole self To sky, to earth, to sun, to moon To one whole voice that is you And you can’t see, can’t hear, Can’t know except in moments Steadily growing, and in languages That aren’t always sound but other Circles of motion. Like eagle that Sunday morning Over Salt River. Circled in blue sky In wind, swept our hearts clean With sacred wings. We see you, see ourselves and know That we must take the utmost care And kindness in all things. Breathe in, knowing we are made of All this, and breathe, knowing We are truly blessed because we Were born, and die soon within a True circle of motion, Like eagle rounding out the morning Inside us. We pray that it will be done In beauty. In beauty. by Joy Harjo Our first teacher is our own heart ~ Cheyenne proverb