DFG News Archive

DFG Names Lake County Warden as Best Wildlife Cop in State

Warden Lynette Shimek of Lake County has been named Warden of the Year by the California Department of Fish and Game (DFG). Peers and supervisors established the award in 1989 to recognize the Department’s best law enforcement officer.

Shimek, 47, is a 16-year veteran with DFG. She has been the wildlife officer for Lake County her entire career.

“Lynette Shimek’s dedication to California’s wildlife and natural resources are unparalleled,” said DFG Director Ryan Broddrick. “Her commitment to the mission of the Department of Fish and Game and to the responsibility of its enforcement officers exemplifies what it means to be a warden in this state, and it deserves our recognition of her as the state’s Warden of the Year.”

“I am humbled by this award and for the recognition that it brings,” Shimek said. “Being a warden is a life path for me, but there are so many people who have helped me, who’ve shaped me into who and what I am.”

DFG warden leadership, including assistant chiefs and captains, presented Shimek the award during a quarterly meeting today at the Yolo Basin Wildlife Area.

“Lynette Shimek is known for her dedication to duty and her enthusiasm for wildlife enforcement,” said DFG Chief of Patrol Nancy Foley. “Every warden who knows her knows that they can count on her every day, in every case. She has the best interest of this state in mind in every thing she does. She is a leader amongst those who are sworn to uphold the laws and regulations that defend our wildlife resources.”

In the nomination process, Shimek’s supervisor Lt. Wayne Kidwell cited examples of her successes. One of the many elements was her investigation of a taxidermist who was working without permits. She led a team of DFG wardens as well coordinated with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and eventually seized more than 4,100 illegally possessed migratory and non-game birds that included four threatened or endangered species.

“It took 11 hours for nine officers to remove all of the evidence from the first two residences,” Kidwell wrote in his nomination. “A U-Haul truck was rented to transport the seized freezers and evidence.”

Another investigation initially thought to be a mountain lion attack – but ultimately became a homicide investigation of a 5-year-old victim – drove Shimek to help establish a DFG Critical Incident Stress Management team. She saw the need for a method to help wardens handle the trauma of their jobs after watching several fellow officers become emotionally and physically distraught on the case.

She is one of three team managers who work throughout the state for DFG. She was a critical component in the “debriefing, defusing, and peer support,” as she put it, following the shooting of a warden during a marijuana eradication operation in Santa Clara County.

“The Department’s response was so overwhelmingly positive after the shooting,” Shimek said. “There was so much concern for the officers and for their families, for the warden who was wounded and for those who were on the operation with him. There was a lot of concern from the Department about support given to them – both physically and emotionally.”

Shimek remains constantly busy on patrol, whether the focus is fishing, hunting or environmental issues. Lt. Kidwell noted that she has written and served 15 search warrants, and has assisted on 15 others. Additionally, during a single month, Shimek made 18 over-limit cases at Indian Valley Reservoir and seized 640 fish. Her investigations led to guilty convictions of each suspect and the courts levied nearly $35,000 in fines.

Shimek embraces environmental scrutiny as much as wildlife investigations. She compiled a complicated case where major streambed violations and habitat degradations were the issue. The court ordered more than a million dollars in fines and a million dollars in restoration paid by the violator.

“That’s one of the best things I like about this work,” she said. “I love to take this little tiny speck of evidence and build a whole case from it.”

Shimek has been a member of the Lake County Search and Rescue team since 1993, serving as part of the mounted unit. She was a handler for a DFG canine unit with her dog, Brett, and trained members of the local sheriff’s department in dog handling. The California Office of Emergency Services selected her to organize and instruct search dog classes during a statewide training event.

She has received more than 15 commendations from various agencies. One of the awards came from the California Highway Patrol for her work with high school students on the dangers of drunken driving. DFG and the Lake County Sheriff’s Department cited her for rescuing five people at night after they were involved in a boating accident. She received a DFG’s Director’s Achievement Award for the same incident. In one award, the Veterans of Foreign Wars noted her “selfless and heroic assumption of citizenship responsibility in crime prevention and criminal apprehension.”