Dept. of Game, Fish and Parks
For Immediate Release: Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2003
For more information:  Don McCrea, 223-7700

CONSERVATION OFFICER TRAINEES RECEIVE TOP AWARDS AT ACADEMY

PIERRE – Two of South Dakota’s newest Conservation Officer Trainees were recently recognized for their abilities during the graduation ceremonies of the 116th Basic Law Enforcement Academy held in Pierre on Nov. 14.

Conservation Officer Trainee Andy Schmahl was the recipient of the "Top Gun Award" in recognition of his outstanding performance on the firearms range.

Conservation Officer Trainee Mark Ohm was selected as the honored recipient of the "Coler-Williams Memorial Award," in recognition of his number one finish in a graduating class of 40 students. The Coler-Williams Award, given for the top student in each graduating class, is in memory of FBI Agents Jack Coler and Ron Williams, who were ambushed and murdered near Oglala on June 26th, 1975.

"The basic academy is challenging for the new officers in many ways", says Don McCrea, a Game Fish and Parks conservation officer supervisor for central South Dakota. "All aspects of law enforcement and criminal procedures are covered during this comprehensive training, and at times, is very physically and academically challenging to the participants."

Bryan Gortmaker, director of law enforcement training for the state Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI), provided praise for the 40 students who successfully completed training for the 116th basic law enforcement class. "This was an excellent group of officers to begin with," he said. "When GFP has two of their officers win these awards, it says a lot about the caliber of people they hire as conservation officers."

With the exception of the South Dakota Highway Patrol that conducts its own training academy, the 12-week basic law enforcement academy, administered by the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation, is a mandatory requirement for all law enforcement officers in South Dakota.

The three conservation officer trainees who recently graduated will now move into a 12-week GFP field-training program prior to receiving a permanent duty station.

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