State trooper Freeberg seeking increased local collaboration

State Wildlife Trooper Kyle Freeberg moved to Wrangell back in April. As a state trooper, Freeberg's job includes patrolling old logging roads during the hunting season, and watching the commercial and sport fishing in Wrangell's waters. Of course, being the only trooper in Wrangell means he has a lot of ground to cover, literally and figuratively. As such, he said that he wants to increase the amount of collaboration between himself and the people of Wrangell. This is not only to help him do a better job as a state trooper, he said, but also to give the community some ownership over its local resource management.

"Oftentimes people, I think, are confused in thinking that there's an 'us versus them,' I'm hiding around the corner trying to almost trap people and get them in trouble, kind of a thing," he said. "I am hoping that we can change that perspective and the reality of it."

What people come to places like Wrangell for, Freeberg said, is to get out in nature and away from people. They like the seclusion and the privacy that comes with hunting and fishing. The job of the state troopers is to make sure that those people are staying within hunting and fishing regulations, to ensure that Alaska's natural resources will be around for everyone to enjoy for many years to come. Having a state trooper hiding behind every rock and tree would defeat the purpose of going out into the woods for some seclusion, he said. That is where the community comes in.

"What if we were all game wardens, and what if it was all of our job to make sure that this resource is protected, and managed, and used properly?" Freeberg asked.

The Wildlife Safeguard Program is a program within the Alaska Department of Public Safety that Freeberg said was first introduced in the 1980s. The program allows people to call a toll-free number and leave anonymous tips of any resource law violations. Giving people the opportunity to call anonymously is important because sometimes in small towns people may be reluctant to point the finger, he said. Freeberg also added that providing information to the safeguard program can lead to monetary rewards, if it leads to prosecution.

He also gave an example of why it is so important for the community to be involved in regulating itself. Sentinel readers may recall an illegal moose that was killed on Nemo Loop Road last September. According to an October 2018 article in the Sentinel, almost $4,000 in reward money was offered by the Stikine Sportsmen Association. While this occurred before he moved to Wrangell, Freeberg said that it was a good example of a community coming together in defense of their natural resources. However, the investigation of this moose killing has not been resolved yet, as no one has come forward with any information.

"We are actually still looking for information or anybody who knows anything about that," he said. "It's situations like that that dramatically impact this community."

The safeguard program's tip line is 1-800-478-3377. Freeberg also provided a basic template people could follow when calling in a tip. If someone sees a hunting or fishing violation, they could call in to report when and where it occurred, a description of any vehicles involved and the suspect, what game or fish was taken and how, what equipment was used, what direction the suspect was seen traveling in afterwards, and the general weather conditions at the time. To learn more about the safeguard program, visit http://www.dps.alaska.gov/awt/safeguard.

"I'm excited to see what we can do here, together, as a community," Freeberg said.

On a related topic, deer hunting season opens August 1. Freeberg wanted to remind the community of some common violations to avoid. Spotlighting deer, making them freeze by shining bright lights at them, is illegal. It is also illegal to take any game on man made roads, for reasons of public safety. A Southeast Alaska-specific regulation to keep in mind is that it is illegal to shoot game from a boat, he added. Other common violations include forgetting one's hunting license, not validating one's harvest ticket, and failing to salvage all the required meat from a kill, such as neck and rib meat.