NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

MORNING REPORT

Wednesday, December 1, 2010

INCIDENTS

Sequoia-Kings Canyon NPs

Drug Trafficker Sentenced

A man found guilty of drug trafficking in the park was sentenced in mid-November to 10 years in federal prison for growing thousands of marijuana plants in Sequoia and Kings Canyon and being an illegal alien in possession of a firearm. G.O.V., a Mexican national, was arrested by park rangers during a raid on a marijuana grow site in the park in 2009. Following the arrest, agents from the Investigative Services Branch continued the investigation and prosecution. G.O.V. was suspected of having been responsible for all the marijuana grow sites within one canyon in the park since 2002, and ISB had linked him to two marijuana grow sites within the park in 2005. G.O.V. was also responsible for damaging over five acres of previously undisturbed park land. During cleanup operations at the site, rangers removed over a half ton of garbage, 10,000 feet of irrigation hose, and a wide array of hazardous materials, including fertilizers, pesticides, rodenticides, and propane canisters. G.O.V. was sentenced to ten years in prison and was ordered to pay $59,094 in restitution to the park for the costs of cleanup operations and for the damage to natural resources. This successful prosecution provides an excellent example of the strong working relationship between the Investigative Services Branch, the U.S. Attorney's Office, and the park rangers of Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks. [Dana Dierkes, Public Affairs Officer]

Shenandoah NP

Suicide Victim Found In Keyser Run Area

A park neighbor recently reported that a vehicle had been parked at the boundary trailhead for Keyser Run for about two weeks. Although a cursory investigation of the vehicle revealed nothing unusual, contact with the registered owner's family members revealed his struggles with unemployment and bouts of depression. A subsequent search of the vehicle led to the discovery of a suicide note. Hasty searches were conducted, but no sign of him was found. Search efforts expanded the next day, and one team was sent to a prominent knoll that was listed on a backcountry permit that the 48-year-old man had obtained in 2001. His body was found at this location, an apparent victim of suicide by helium asphyxiation. This was the fourth suicide in the Keyser Run area in the last decade. [Dixon Freeland, North District Ranger]

OTHER NEWS

The following stories are among those in today's edition of InsideNPS. To see the full text, including images, NPS employees should go to the InsideNPS home page ( HYPERLINK "http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=index" http://inside.nps.gov/index.cfm?handler=index). Non-NPS employees can see most of them on the NPS Digest page ( HYPERLINK "http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/" http://home.nps.gov/applications/digest/):

Dry Tortugas NP - Dry Tortugas National Park turned 75 this year and its friends group, South Florida National Parks Trust, hosted a celebration at the park's EcoDiscovery Visitor Center in Key West on November 5th.

Climate Change Response Program - The Climate Change Response Program is soliciting project proposals from NPS staff for the 2011 George Melendez Wright Climate Change Internship Program. All NPS units (parks and central offices) are encouraged to submit project proposals.

Risk Management Division - Nominations are currently being sought for individual and group safety awards. They are due to regional safety managers by January 14th.

Ozark NSR - Bryan Culpepper, the park's museum curator and archivist, passed away on November 25th following a long battle with cancer. Photo.

Chief Information Officer - Ken Handwerger was recently named the chief of Web Services (formerly Solutions Architecture and Web Services), a division of the National Information Services Center. Photo.

Midwest Region - Martha "Marty" Sutherland, Midwest Region's comptroller, received a superior service award at a recent MWRO senior staff meeting for her invaluable influence in shaping business processes and in striving to improve and develop systems useful to end users.

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Prepared by the Division of Law Enforcement, Security and Emergency Services, Washington Office, with the support of the Office of the Chief Information Officer. Edited by Bill Halainen ( HYPERLINK "mailto:Bill_Halainen@nps.gov" Bill_Halainen@nps.gov).

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