County Sheriff's deputies and State Patrol regularly respond to game violations and trespass calls related to fishing and hunting. Most of their emphasis, however, is geared towards Titles 9, 9A and 46 of the RCW's, (crimes against persons, property and traffic), but they also enforce Title 77 (fish & wildlife) of the RCW's on an occasional basis.

There are also some city police who are versed fairly well in title 77 of the RCW's, but again, they tend to concentrate on Title 9, 9A, and 46 crimes and infractions.

Generally, not always (note the broad disclaimer), deputies, troopers, and police will call in to WDFW to have them send a game officer more acquainted with fish & game violations because of their lack of familiarity with the hunting and fishing regs.

EXAMPLE: I had written permission to hunt on a piece of property posted "no hunting without written permission". I shot a cow elk with my muzzleloader on New Years Day. I had a modern firearms tag, a special permit good for all of January, and I was in a firearms restriction zone.

As I was driving out of the farmer's driveway a deputy pulls up, asks what I was doing, my ID, my hunting license and pulls out his ticket book.

He says that I can't hunt on property posted no hunting, that I am poaching a cow elk, hunting out of season, and that I am using the wrong weapon for my tag.

I politely corrected him letting him know that I can hunt on property marked "no hunting without written permission" when I have said written permision on my person, and I showed him my note.

I then showed him my special permit for a cow elk for the month of January in this particular unit.

I then showed him a map and legal description of the unit, and the description of the firearms restriction for the unit showing that it was okay for me to use my muzzleloader here. I invited him to call State Patrol dispatch and talk with a WDFW enforcement officer, which he did, verified what I was saying was true, then he apologized.

It was his lack of familiarity of the game laws and the area he was patroling that could have created a big hassle for me. Luckily I knew the rules and regs, had a basic understanding of the RCW's, and I was polite and respectful.

WDFW game officers are specialists. They need to enforce fish and game violations, and while it is nice for the other departments to help out from time to time, they will almost always defer to a game officer.