USFW agent under fire in South Dakota

[Liberty Belle]

This agent was used by GF&P to arrest the Multi-County predator control pilot in an incident that precipitated the west river hunting lockout. Since it is now hunters who are protesting his tactics and his adverse effect on the GF&P employees he works with, the governor's office has finally decided that something must be done about Prieksat and his heavy-handed ways.

Federal game warden ruffles Rounds aide's feathers
By Kevin Woster, Journal staff

A regional official for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has come to the defense of a federal game warden who is under attack by a senior aide to Gov. Mike Rounds for his law-enforcement techniques.

Gary Mowad of Denver, special agent in charge for South Dakota and seven other states, said the complaints against agent Bob Prieksat by Rounds' chief of staff Rob Skjonsberg were vague. Mowad said he hoped to meet with the governor's staff to learn their specific concerns about Prieksat, whom he considers a top-flight agent with a spotless performance record.

"Bob is one of my finest supervisors, best field agents and absolutely one of the most knowledgeable agents when it comes to the law and case history, and things like that," Mowad said. "We would like to sit down with the governor's office and find out specifically what the issues are."

Skjonsberg said Wednesday that he doesn't quarrel with Prieksat's skills in law enforcement but questions the way he deals with the hunting public. Skjonsberg said he has received dozens of complaints about Prieksat during the past four years from resident and nonresident sportsmen. The Fish and Wildlife Service should reassign Prieksat from Pierre to another state or require him to change his attitude and behavior in dealing with the hunting public, Skjonsberg said.

"I'm not talking about his understanding of the law or his ability to investigate a case. I'm specifically talking about mannerisms, approach and demeanor as he's checking people in the field," he said.

Skjonsberg has ordered state Game, Fish & Parks Department enforcement officers not to work with Prieksat except in cases of extreme need and then only when authorized by GF&P Secretary Jeff Vonk.

Because the public often confuses state and federal agents, GF&P often gets blamed for Prieksat's bad behavior, Skjonsberg said. Although the state is willing to work with Mowad on the issue, Skjonsberg said he was skeptical that Prieksat could or would change his enforcement style.

"I'm not certain anything other than that (reassignment) will bring satisfaction," Skjonsberg said. "At some point, people become so they are not salvageable. I'm not sure anything short of reassignment is going to solve the problem."

Prieksat, who didn't return a call left at his office in Pierre on Wednesday, is particularly well known in the Pierre area, where thousands of hunters gather each year to shoot ducks and geese. Along with field work as a federal warden, he also supervises other agents in South Dakota and North Dakota.

Prieksat formerly served as a conservation officer for GF&P in Pierre. He then worked for the U.S. Marshal's Service before joining the law enforcement staff of the Fish and Wildlife Service. The agency sent him to Pierre in 1995, where he took the senior resident agent's position vacated by John Cooper, who became GF&P secretary.

Cooper retired as secretary last month but continues to work for the state as an adviser to Rounds on key natural resource issues. Cooper declined to comment Wednesday on Prieksat or Skjonsberg's criticisms. Vonk also declined comment.

Pierre sportsman Roger Pries, formerly the executive secretary of the South Dakota Wildlife Federation, said Skjonsberg's efforts to discredit and remove Prieksat were inappropriate and offensive.

"Why do we need a secretary of Game, Fish & Parks if some staff member for the governor runs the department or gives directives to it?" he said.

Pries said some of the most consistent attacks on Prieksat seem to come from people involved in or tied to commercial-hunting operations. An avid hunter, Pries said he has never been checked by Prieksat in the field but presumes he has been observed by the agent over the years.

"I've never seen him, but maybe he's seen me," Pries said. "I don't think I've had anything to hide."

Pries said he couldn't judge Prieksat's style in dealing with the hunting public.

"I can't say, maybe he's a little abrasive," Pries said. "But some of the people he deals with could make you abrasive."

Skjonsberg said that other Fish and Wildlife Service agents operate in the state without causing controversy.

"I haven't heard a single complaint about other agents," he said.

Mowad said he doesn't plan to reassign Prieksat but is willing to meet with Skjonsberg.

"We want a good relationship between South Dakota and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service," he said. "Whatever this special rub is that they have with Bob, I'm very hopeful that we can work through it."

[Brad S]

Gov Rounds should hire a customer service manager from Walmart to elevate burearcrat relations standards to at least that of minimum wage wallys workers. I am inscensed when government employees (those riding in the wagon) can't even be as professional as a 20 year old Walmart worker.

[Liberty Belle]

This rogue USFW agent is a former GF&P conservation officer who operated just like the rest of the GF&P COs. Do any of you wonder why landowners were so disgusted with their actions? The lockout is directly attributable to GF&P personnel and the same "brown-shirt" tactics they used in western South Dakota. This man was a hero to them then and was referred to as "our enforcer" by higher-ups in GF&P. Prieksat is right when he says in this story that he "hasn't changed". This type of behavior was encouraged and both landowners and hunters have suffered because of it.

Embattled warden once recognized by state
By Kevin Woster, Journal staff

PIERRE — A federal game warden in Pierre who is now being shunned by the South Dakota Game, Fish & Parks Department for alleged heavy-handed law enforcement was once honored by that same agency.

State records show that Bob Prieksat was named the Shikar-Safari Club International Conservation Officer of the Year when he worked for GF&P in Pierre in 1985. That award is typically given to the top conservation officer in the state wildlife agency each year.

But Prieksat is now the object of public criticism from Rob Skjonsberg, chief of staff to Gov. Mike Rounds, for law-enforcement techniques that Skjonsberg claims have been overzealous and abusive. Skjonsberg wants the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to reassign Prieksat, who currently oversees law enforcement for that agency in North Dakota, South Dakota and Nebraska.

Skjonsberg also has ordered GF&P conservation officers not to work with Prieksat, except in special situations approved individually by GF&P Secretary Jeff Vonk. Although the state can’t control Prieksat or determine Fish and Wildlife Service personnel policy, it can isolate the federal agent from state officers, Skjonsberg said.

“My message is actually very simple. This agent is not our employee, and we are not obligated to do anything with him. And if the federal agency isn’t going to do something about his behavior, then I can certainly make a management decision within state government that limits our exposure to him.”

Skjonsberg said he is responding to a succession of complaints about Prieksat’s enforcement tactics and demeanor during the past four or five years. He hasn’t yet offered any specific incidents or identified anyone who has complained.

When asked how Prieksat could go from being the best in GF&P in 1985 to being officially ostracized by the state in 2007, Skjonsberg referred the question to Prieksat.

“I really can’t explain his behavior then or now,” Skjonsberg said. “Ask him.”

When asked, Prieksat said: “I haven’t changed.”

A story on Skjonsberg’s edict and criticism against Prieksat attracted about 100 comments on the Journal’s Web site in two days last week. Most of the comments were anonymous. Some defended Prieksat. The majority were critical.

But the news story and Web site traffic are prompting some Prieksat critiques to go public. Steve Wright of Albert Lea, Minn., and Jim Wendl of west central Iowa claim that Prieksat verbally abused and intimidated them during a goose hunt near Pierre last fall, then gave them a citation they didn’t deserve.

Wright said they were leaving a field where they had been hunting when Prieksat challenged them with profanity-laced accusations that they were shooting over their limit.

“He was in our face to the point where he’s spitting in our face,” Wright said. “He’s out of control, he’s so vehemently mad.”

Wright and Wendl maintained that they had “gifted” a previous day’s limit of geese to the owner of the land they were hunting, which allowed them to legally shoot another day’s limit. After a contact with landowner Jim Forney, Prieksat told the men they would instead get a ticket for not having proper identifying tags on the geese they gave away, Wright said.

“He said it would be in the neighborhood of $50 or $75, no big deal, and that it wouldn’t go on our record or affect our hunting status,” Wright said.

Weeks later both men received citations for a total of $225 each. Wendl said his wife, a lawyer, studied the law and believes that Prieksat erred in interpreting it. She called the U.S. attorney’s office in Pierre with questions and ended up talking to Prieksat, Wendl said.

“He jumped her just like he did with us, and went straight to hot,” Wendl said.

At his wife’s advice, Wendl paid the fine. But Wright is talking to a lawyer and trying to decide if he will pay his fine, or fight the charge.

Despite the expense and trouble, Wright said it might be worth the fight.

“I have never, ever been treated like that from anybody, much less somebody who represents the top tier of our sport,” he said. “It’s uncalled for.”

Contacted Sunday at his home in Pierre, Prieksat disputed that version of the incident by Wright and Wendl. Prieksat said it wouldn’t be appropriate to discuss details of the case but denied the allegations of profanity or getting close enough physically to spit in their face.

“Yes, we had a verbal confrontation over them telling three or four versions of what happened and not telling the truth,” Prieksat said. “But I didn’t spit in their face or use all that profanity. Absolutely not.”

Skjonsberg maintains that he has heard of a string of complaints similar to Wright’s and Gilkerson’s. He said they made him worry that the image of state GF&P conservation officers was being tainted by Prieksat’s behavior. But some West River landowners who have been critical of the GF&P wonder if there are other reasons for the state’s attack on Prieksat.

Buffalo area rancher Susan Clarkson pointed out that Prieksat had worked for GF&P as a conservation officer, apparently in good standing, years before he joined the Fish and Wildlife Service.

“I don’t think he just suddenly changed his tactics or demeanor,” she said. “Evidently, his tactics and demeanor were OK when he was a South Dakota Game, Fish & Parks employee.”

Clarkson said Prieksat might have learned some of his aggressive enforcement style from John Cooper, a former federal game warden who served as GF&P secretary from 1995 until last month. When Prieksat was a young GF&P officer in the early and mid-1980s, he often worked with Cooper, then senior resident law-enforcement agent for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in Pierre.

Later, their association continued when Cooper supported Prieksat in his application for a job with the Fish and Wildlife Service in 1988.

When Cooper was appointed GF&P secretary, Prieksat succeeded him in the supervisory agent’s job in Pierre. Cooper knew his share of controversy in the early 1980s, when some hunters and landowners complained that he was overzealous.

In one instance, the owner of a commercial goose operation filed a civil suit against Cooper, which was later dismissed. Clarkson said state officials seem to forget Cooper’s previous reputation as a federal warden.

“When I read these comments about Prieksat, it sounded a lot like how a person from Pierre described Cooper’s demeanor when he was with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service,” Clarkson said.

Clarkson said she suspects that Cooper’s law-enforcement style rubbed off on other officers, including Prieksat, just as it eventually permeated GF&P policy.

“The thing is, you can get rid of Prieksat, but are you going to get rid of the problem?”

Cooper recently retired as GF&P secretary and works part time as a natural resource adviser to Rounds. He declined a Journal request for comment last week.

As GF&P secretary, Cooper was at the center of many contentious exchanges with West River landowners unhappy with GF&P policies. Particularly controversial was the agency’s use of the “open fields” doctrine, a group of laws and court rulings giving officers the authority to enter private fields without the owner’s permission to check hunters.

Cooper fought to protect the rights of his officers to use the open-fields doctrine but also amended GF&P policy to make it more sensitive to landowners. Clarkson and other critics contend that Cooper didn’t do enough. And they believe that Vonk — who also supports open fields — is continuing the same style as the new GF&P.

Elm Springs rancher Pat Trask has battled Rounds and Cooper over what he considers to be the state’s disregard for private property rights. Trask said the move against Prieksat might be a manipulative attempt to improve the GF&P image.

“I’m kind of guessing that the people in the Rounds administration who are perpetrating some action against Prieksat are somehow trying to spin this,” Trask said. “They’re wanting to make a state agency look kinder and gentler by ostracizing Prieksat.”

Skjonsberg rejected those notions Friday, saying he was simply trying to end the long-standing problems caused by Prieksat.

“Now that we’ve rung the bell, I just hope sportsmen find the courage to express their outrage and experiences,” Skjonsberg said. “I’m pushing this because I believe our state deserves better.”

GF&P’s conflicts with some landowners are separate issues from his action against Prieksat, Skjonsberg said. GF&P is continuing the good work begun by Cooper to improve relations with landowners, he said.

“To this point, I’m proud of the progress that GF&P has made. At the same time, there will always be policy decisions that you disagree on. We just plan to do it respectfully,” he said. “If we have a bad egg somewhere — point them out, and we’ll handle it.”

Prieksat said Sunday that he hadn’t been contacted personally by anyone from the governor’s office. Neither had Gary Mowad, Prieksat’s supervisor with the Fish and Wildlife Service in Denver. Mowad told the Journal last week that he was willing to meet with state officials to discuss the issue. Mowad also praised Prieksat as a top agent with a clean performance record and said he had no plans to reassign him.

Contact Kevin Woster at 394-8413 or kevin.woster@rapidcityjournal.com
February 19, 2007
http://www.rapidcityjournal.com/articles/2007/02/19/news/top/news001iprieksat.txt

[Brad S]

Um LB, I'm like your biggest fan, but should you be using terms like "brown shirt" for political expediancy? Is that a Clash reference "when they start wearin blue and brown, workin for the clampdown."

Seriously, knowing there is an elected defender of liberty is heartening.

I love living in the Sandhills, these guys rue government control.

[Southdakotahunter]

I can guarantee you, there are VERY FEW that act like this clown, and if there are, they need to go.

dont go putting all the COs in the same catagorie as this clown LB, you know they are not all like that! I can tell you the COs dont look up to this guy!

Im sure when this bad egg has hit the trail, the so called "lockout" will end, right LB!

[Liberty Belle]

I wondered how long it was going to take for you to weigh in on this SDH. Could we get that guarantee of yours in writing?

It was GF&P that called Prieksat, who they called “our enforcer” (their term, not mine), in to arrest the Multi-District predator pilot for shooting a wounded coyote that had run through the fence onto the GF&P pilot’s property. The involvement of GF&P CO, the GF&P trapper and the GF&P pilot is what ultimately led to the lockout and the lockout will continue until landowners are protected by law from these thugs, from both GF&P and USFW.

Do you realize that Prieksat was a GF&P conservation officer for years and was honored for his wonderful service? Did you know that one of the highest officers in GF&P was Prieksat’s college roommate and is a very close friend?

These quotes are from the above article you obviously haven’t read:

“A federal game warden in Pierre who is now being shunned by the South Dakota Game, Fish & Parks Department for alleged heavy-handed law enforcement was once honored by that same agency.

State records show that Bob Prieksat was named the Shikar-Safari Club International Conservation Officer of the Year when he worked for GF&P in Pierre in 1985. That award is typically given to the top conservation officer in the state wildlife agency each year.”


And how about this one?:

“When asked how Prieksat could go from being the best in GF&P in 1985 to being officially ostracized by the state in 2007, Skjonsberg referred the question to Prieksat.

“I really can’t explain his behavior then or now,” Skjonsberg said. “Ask him.”

When asked, Prieksat said: “I haven’t changed.”

A story on Skjonsberg’s edict and criticism against Prieksat attracted about 100 comments on the Journal’s Web site in two days last week. Most of the comments were anonymous. Some defended Prieksat. The majority were critical.”

And this:

“Skjonsberg maintains that he has heard of a string of complaints similar to Wright’s and Gilkerson’s. He said they made him worry that the image of state GF&P conservation officers was being tainted by Prieksat’s behavior. But some West River landowners who have been critical of the GF&P wonder if there are other reasons for the state’s attack on Prieksat.

Buffalo area rancher Susan Clarkson pointed out that Prieksat had worked for GF&P as a conservation officer, apparently in good standing, years before he joined the Fish and Wildlife Service.

“I don’t think he just suddenly changed his tactics or demeanor,” she said. “Evidently, his tactics and demeanor were OK when he was a South Dakota Game, Fish & Parks employee.”

Clarkson said Prieksat might have learned some of his aggressive enforcement style from John Cooper, a former federal game warden who served as GF&P secretary from 1995 until last month. When Prieksat was a young GF&P officer in the early and mid-1980s, he often worked with Cooper, then senior resident law-enforcement agent for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in Pierre.

Later, their association continued when Cooper supported Prieksat in his application for a job with the Fish and Wildlife Service in 1988.

When Cooper was appointed GF&P secretary, Prieksat succeeded him in the supervisory agent’s job in Pierre. Cooper knew his share of controversy in the early 1980s, when some hunters and landowners complained that he was overzealous.

In one instance, the owner of a commercial goose operation filed a civil suit against Cooper, which was later dismissed. Clarkson said state officials seem to forget Cooper’s previous reputation as a federal warden.

“When I read these comments about Prieksat, it sounded a lot like how a person from Pierre described Cooper’s demeanor when he was with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service,” Clarkson said.

Clarkson said she suspects that Cooper’s law-enforcement style rubbed off on other officers, including Prieksat, just as it eventually permeated GF&P policy.

“The thing is, you can get rid of Prieksat, but are you going to get rid of the problem?”

Where's Happy? He must have something to say about this, wouldn't you think?

[Southdakotahunter]

I dont know the man and have never had a run in with him. What i can testify to is i have encountered MANY COs in my hunting and i can recall only 2 that have been real pricks. One was in charles mix county, the other was up north......cant remember exactly where, but it was a woman. Anyway, all others were very friendly, helpful and just decent people. There will be bad ones for sure, just like bad ranchers. I have no idea why it took so long to figure this fella out. I hope they clean house of the bad ones. I have always said that.

So what about it LB.....gonna call off the dogs once this clown is kicking rocks down HWY 14??? Time to shut down the lockout? Start trying to manage the animals? When will ya give me permission? (when hell freezes over right) Amazing how much clout hunters have huh LB

[Brad S]

Ok SD hunter, show me all the complaints levied by "the good COs" against the "lone rogue" Bull$hit! LB posted evidence that the "lone rogue was actually revered by the "good COs"

The lockout is a property rights issue not jack booted thug issue. Yes, jack booted thugs don't abide property rights, but the lockout is about establishing that all who don't respect property rights are jack booted thugs.

While no property owner would want an abusive psychopath on their property, even kind, polite COs can propagate leafy spurge (1 of a thousand negative possibilities) if they don't respect property rights.

[P Joe]

[Brad S]

"greedy ranchers got the ones that had a legit beef to follow them in trying to run over the rest of the state with their commecial hunting ideas."


Hey Comrad, how did the ranchers "run over the rest of the stste?"
I know your answer, I just want to snicker at your limitless stupidity some more. Come on now, I'm laughing with you not at you.

[Brad S]

"Well...... while don't you arrest the wind then. I'm sure that has more to do with you spurge problem than any tresspasser. Typical "stupid" talk here folks. Hide behind some far fetch, but possibly fessible excuse!"

Hey Einstein, people die from tornadoes so its ok by your stupidity for CO's to kill them. Oh yeah, wind is'nt responsible for spurge propagation. What about ecoli scours, What about bvd and on and on. What about a tresspasser spooking livestock, or infringing on your privacy when a rancher and his wife are skinny dipping in a stock tank? or queering a roundup or spoiling the scenery? I know Stalin wouldn't care, but Thomas Jefferson sure as hell would.

[Liberty Belle]