PA wildlife officer killed in the line of duty last night

[Everyday Hunter]

Pennsylvania is abuzz with the sad news that a 31 year old wildlife conservation officer was killed in the line of duty last night. From the Associated Press:

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GETTYSBURG, Pa. — A Pennsylvania Game Commission officer investigating possible nighttime hunting and poaching was shot to death, and police took a man into custody following an 11-hour search.

Wildlife Conservation Officer David Grove, 31, was killed Thursday night in Freedom Township, southwest of Gettysburg.

Christopher Lynn Johnson, of Fairfield, was detained Friday morning in nearby Franklin Township, state police said. No other details were immediately available, but police said they were not searching for anyone else related to the investigation. Police earlier had said the 27-year-old should be considered armed and dangerous.

Grove had been investigating reports of nighttime shooting and poaching at the time he was killed, game commission spokesman Jerry Feaser said.

"This was a malicious act," Feaser told The Associated Press. The last time a game commission officer was killed in the line of duty was 1915, he said.

Game commission executive director Carl Roe called Grove "a bright, young officer" dedicated to promoting Pennsylvania's hunting heritage.

"Our prayers and thoughts go out to WCO Grove's family and friends, as we mourn the loss of one of our own," he said.

Adams County Coroner Pat Felix said an autopsy was under way to determine the cause and manner of death, but she said it appeared Grove had been shot to death.

Online court records list a Christopher Lynn Johnson with a history of burglary convictions and a 2005 guilty plea to a charge of fleeing an officer and endangering the welfare of children.

Grove graduated from Penn State University in 2004 with a bachelor's degree in wildlife and fisheries science, according to the game commission.

The last game commission officer to be shot and killed in the line of duty was Joseph McHugh in Weatherly, Carbon County, on Nov. 7, 1915.

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Here's a link to another story, with photos: UPDATE: Person Of Interest In Officer Shooting Captured, Police Say

If you pray, then pray. Very sad and tragic.

Steve

[Everyday Hunter]

Here's the Pennsylvania Game Commission notice on the tragedy (#121-10, November 12, 2010):

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GAME COMMISSION WCO GROVE KILLED IN THE LINE OF DUTY

HARRISBURG – Pennsylvania Game Commission Wildlife Conservation Officer (WCO) David L. Grove was shot and killed in the line of duty while on patrol around 10:30 p.m., on Nov. 11, along Shrivers Road in Freedom Township, Adams County. Grove, age 31, of Fairfield, Adams County, was investigating reports of ongoing night-time shooting and possible poaching activity in the area.

The Pennsylvania State Police is leading the investigation into the killing of WCO Grove.

Prior to this incident, the last Game Commission Officer to have been shot and killed in the line of duty was Game Protector Joseph McHugh in Weatherly, Carbon County, on Nov. 7, 1915.

“We are shocked and saddened by the killing of WCO Grove,” said Carl G. Roe, Game Commission executive director. “He was a bright, young officer who was dedicated to conserving Pennsylvania’s wildlife resources, and promoting our state’s rich hunting and trapping heritage.

“Our prayers and thoughts go out to WCO Grove’s family and friends, as we mourn the loss of one of our own.”

A graduate of the 27th Class of the Game Commission’s Ross Leffler School of Conservation, Grove was commissioned a full-time Wildlife Conservation Officer on March 8, 2008, and assigned to the southern district of Adams County.

Before being appointed a WCO Cadet, Grove had served as a Deputy WCO in Franklin County, from 2001 until 2007. Grove also worked at the Penn State University Deer Research Facility in University Park, Centre County, from 2003 until 2004.

Grove graduated, in 1997, from Grace Academy in Hagerstown, Maryland, and he attended Appalachian Bible College, in Bradley, West Virginia, from 1997 until 1999. In 2004, Grove earned a bachelor’s degree in wildlife and fisheries science from Penn State University.

WCOs are responsible for administering a wide variety of Game Commission programs within an assigned district of about 350 square miles. Primary duties include law enforcement, responding to wildlife conflicts, conservation education, and administration of the Hunter-Trapper Education program. Officers also are responsible for supervising and training part-time Deputy Wildlife Conservation Officers.

After being accepted to the agency’s Ross Leffler School of Conservation, WCO Cadets are required to complete an intensive 50-week training program. Major subject areas of instruction include: wildlife management; law enforcement; principles and methods; wildlife laws and regulations; land management practices; public relations and conservation education; firearms training and unarmed self-defense; and agency administrative procedures. In addition to classroom studies, the training program includes temporary field assignments with experienced officers. Field training provides cadets with practical experience in law enforcement and other duties performed by Wildlife Conservation Officers....[/align][/align]

[/align]We've lost an idealistic young man who only wanted to play a positive role in society -- to say nothing of the loss to his family.

Steve

[Marc Anthony]

That just makes me sick. Some young guy lost his life because of some poacher! Is it really that important to have to kill a human being just so you can take wildlife whenever you want? The mentality of some people who think they can rewrite the law for their benefit is sickening.

[Woods Walker]

I'll bet the perps were doing more than poaching deer. 10 to 1 there was a drug deal going down.

I hope they catch these b*****ds too. And fry them.

[Everyday Hunter]

Just heard on the radio that WCO Grove called in the license plate number before he died. Also, that the state will seek the death penalty.

Steve

[Highlander Archery]

Prayers for the family of the fallen WCO.

It would appear that this suspect was far more than a poacher; seems he qualifies as a prohibited person on several levels.

[ishman]

This is a sad sad event. A man trying to do nothing more than earn his paycheck was killed. And over poaching some deer. Its a shame it didnt happen in Texas cause the would fry the Bas**rd for sure. And to think it didnt happen to far from me.

[Ifishandhunt]

It makes me sick to my stomach to read about this. I'll tell ya what, if I lived nearby, I would consider organizing hundreds of hunters (in full camo) to pay their respects as a group so the DNR/Game Commission Officers know we as hunters support them and their families, not these dirt-bag poachers. These officers may be a pain in the but and a little inconvenient to us but in the long run they are trying to keep us within the boundaries of the law. They are trying to keep us and others safe in the woods. They are doing their job to protect the wildlife and game we love. Nobody deserves to get shot doing their job. 

[nhdeerchaser]

Prayers sent to the family of the fallen officer.
Killing another human being over an animal is crossing a big, black line, and After reading what Steve said about PA seeking the death penalty,
I hope they get it.
That piece of garbage has no right to live. Poaching IMO is the most cowardly of crimes and deserves a harsh punishment in its own right.
Add to it the killing of a man doing his job to protect wildlife, and I think you deserve death. Plain and simple.

Mike

[heightman]

I agree 100% with Ifishandhunt. All of the local hunters and fisherman should attend this poor mans services out of respect for all the good they do. Having run into these good officers several times all I can say is they have a serious job to do and they do it very well. True some may seem like hard as''s when they first come upon you. But with what just happen can you blame them? It's just what they need to do until they are certain that they are safe. After all you are the one standing there with a loaded gun in hand while their's is still holstered. My thoughts and prayers are with Officer Grove's family and friends.