NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
                               MORNING REPORT

To:         All National Park Service Areas and Offices

From:       Division of Ranger Activities, Washington Office

Day/Date:   Wednesday, March 17, 1999

INCIDENTS

98-799 - Rock Creek Parkway (DC) - Conviction, Indecent Exposure

On July 19, 1998, Park Police officers arrested R.G. for indecent
exposure following an incident in which he exposed himself to two juveniles
along the southern end of Rock Creek Parkway.  Park Police investigators
obtained a search warrant for property belonging to R.G.; several items
used in deviant sexual crimes were recovered.  A check of R.G.'s criminal
record revealed numerous arrests for sexual crimes throughout the Washington
metropolitan area and in Massachusetts.  On January 19th, R.G. was found
guilty on two counts of lewd and indecent exposure and sentenced to two
years' confinement.  [Henry Berberich, RLES, NCSO, 3/5]

99-13 - Shenandoah NP (VA) - Follow-up: Bear Poaching 

On Monday, January 18th, Operation SOUP (Special Operation to Uncover
Poaching), a three-year investigation into illegal hunting and commercial
sale of black bear parts (gallbladders and paws), came to a head with the
arrest of 25 individuals who were charged with a total of 112 state
violations.  Last week, a federal grand jury handed down 30 felony and three
misdemeanor counts against nine individuals for violating and/or conspiring
to violate the Lacey Act.  State charges were also filed against two people
on four felony counts of illegally selling bear parts used in the jewelry
trade, and against two other people for selling or buying gallbladders.  Two
more search warrants have been served by state officers; bear parts and parts
from other animals were seized.  All these actions are the latest to occur in
this on-going covert investigation, which has been conducted jointly by the
NPS and the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, with assistance
provided by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the West Virginia
Department of Natural Resources.  Overall, a total of 52 individuals have now
been charged with 216 infractions of state law and 52 violations of federal
law.  More charges are expected.  The investigation has revealed evidence
that some of the arrested dealers operating close to Shenandoah NP have sold
thousands of gall bladders over the past ten years.  Some 300 gall bladders
were purchased or confiscated during the last year of the operation. 
Criminal investigator Skip Wissinger has been the lead NPS case agent for
Operation SOUP; rangers Bob Kreiling and Marc Cyr are case agents for a major
overt bear poaching case that occurred in December.  [Clay Jordan, IO,
Operation SOUP, SHEN, 3/16]

99-85 - Manassas NB (VA) - ARPA Case

Ranger Scott Ryan came upon two men with metal detectors and digging
implements in the historic Confederate winter camp area of the park on March
1st.  Both admitted to digging in the area.  They had only items of modern
trash and a nail of unknown age in their possession.  An archeological
assessment by senior staff archeologist Bob Sonderman led to the
identification of 46 shallow excavations and an initial archeological damage
assessment of $50,000.  The Confederate winter camp is an undeveloped, wooded
portion of the battlefield where Confederate troops were stationed in the
winter of 1861-62.  The area is scheduled for an archeological study this
year.  [Henry Berberich, RLES, NCSO, 3/16]

99-86 - Wilson's Creek NB (MO) - ARPA Case

On the afternoon of March 6th, J.I., 22, entered the park's visitor
center and spoke to rangers Sam Martinsen and Christine Tiedt about a recent
relic find.  J.I. is known to park staff as a relic collector.  About an hour
later, ranger Sam Martinsen contacted J.I. in the yard of the Ray House.  J.I.
showed Martinsen a piece of glass he'd found nearby; Martinsen advised him to
put it back and told him that collecting was prohibited in the park. 
Martinsen then took a position where he could observe J.I. with binoculars. 
During the next half hour or so, he saw J.I. dig in three locations in the
yard.  Martinsen contacted J.I. again and confiscated a long-blade, lock-back
knife used as a digging tool, plus several pottery shards, pieces of glass
and square nails.  On March 11th, Buffalo NR archeologist David Hayes began
an archeological assessment of the scene.  Damage to resources will likely
result in ARPA charges against J.I.  [John Sutton, CR, WICR, 3/15]

99-87 - Pea Ridge NMP (AR) - Winter Storm

A winter storm which struck the area on Sunday, March 14th, dropped about 18
inches of snow on the park.  The park was accordingly closed at 3:30 p.m.  It
reopened at 9 a.m. on Monday.  A number of traffic accidents occurred in the
park during the storm, and the snow caused substantial tree damage.  [Robert
Still, PR, PERI, 3/16]

99-88 - Cape Cod NS (MA) - Pedestrian Fatality

S.C., 49, of Eastham, Massachusetts, was walking along the edge of
Cable Road on the afternoon of March 14th when she was struck by a car and
killed.  S.C. was walking west when the eastbound vehicle, operated by
Dilys Smith, 68, also of Eastham, crossed into the oncoming lane and struck
her.  Eastham police are leading the investigation.  [Kevin FitzGerald, CR,
CACO, 3/15]

99-89 - Baltimore-Washington Parkway (MD) - MVA with Fatality

On March 13th, B.W., 31, was driving southbound on the parkway when
her van ran off the roadway and struck a tree.  B.W. and a 15-year-old
passenger were extricated from the vehicle and flown to a hospital in
Baltimore by Eagle One, the Park Police helicopter.  The second passenger,
19-year-old R.J. of Baltimore was pronounced dead at the scene.  The
cause of the accident is still under investigation.  [Henry Berberich, RLES,
NCSO, 3/15]

99-90 - Lake Mead NRA (NV/AZ) - MVA with Fatality

Park dispatch was notified by visitors of a serious rollover accident on the
Katherines Landing access road around 2:30 a.m. on the morning of Friday,
March 12th.  Ranger/medics and a park fire engine were dispatched.  When the
first ranger arrived, Bullhead City fire and police units were on the scene,
treating the three survivors of the accident.  A fourth - A.M., 18,
of Bullhead City - was killed.  The vehicle caught fire and was fully
consumed.  Alcohol and high speed were contributing factors.  The accident is
being jointly investigated by the park and the county.  [John Miser, LAME,
3/12]

RESOURCE MANAGEMENT AND PROTECTION

Olympic NP (WA) - Reintroduction of Gray Wolves

Reintroduction of gray wolves to the park is biologically feasible, according
to a study released last week by the Fish and Wildlife Service.  The study,
conducted under contract by researchers at the University of Idaho, noted
that such a proposal would face substantial social, cultural, and management
challenges.  It also stressed the need for more information.  Gray wolves
were native to the Olympic Peninsula, but were eliminated by early settlers.
Naturalists and scientists have long recommended reintroducing the predator
as one of the few natural links missing from the peninsula's ecosystem.  The
University of Idaho study considered the current and historic status of
wolves on the peninsula, the availability of sufficient suitable habitat to
sustain a viable wolf population, the adequacy of a suitable prey base and
the socio-economic factors associated with wolf reintroduction.  The study,
which included all lands within Grays Harbor, Clallam, Jefferson and Mason
counties, concluded that the most suitable lands for supporting wolves were
federally-owned lands within or adjacent to Olympic National Park due to
human settlement and development patterns.  It concluded that there is
sufficient suitable wolf habitat and prey species within the park to support
approximately 56 wolves.  Further analysis is needed to be able to accurately
project wolf population levels for the peninsula as a whole.  Although more
data is needed on deer and elk populations, the study was able to use
existing data to make basic estimates of the effects of wolf predation on
deer and elk populations in the park.  The study predicted that deer
populations within the park would decline by 13 to 16 percent if wolves were
reintroduced, while elk numbers in the same areas would decline by 16 to 17
percent.  The study identified several challenges for wildlife managers
should the proposal to reintroduce wolves move forward, including a need for
better information on how wolves are affected by roads; better estimates of
deer and elk populations; and the development of plans for a wolf management
program.  Copies of the study are available on the Internet at
http://www.r1.fws.gov and http://www.nps.gov/olym.  [Barb Maynes, PIO, OLYM,
3/15]

OPERATIONAL NOTES

No entries.

MEMORANDA

No entries.

INTERCHANGE

No entries.

PARKS AND PEOPLE

No entries.

                                *  *  *  *  *

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Prepared by the Division of Ranger Activities, WASO, with the cooperation and
support of Delaware Water Gap NRA.

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