CDFW News

California Fish and Game Commission: Joshua Tree Conservation Plan Review Bumped to August; Butte County’s Tufaro Named Wildlife Prosecutor of the Year

Tue, 17 Jun 2025 14:25:09 GMT

Commissioners request public comment on draft plan for Joshua tree conservation by July 10

Last week the California Fish and Game Commission (Commission) continued its decision on the Western Joshua Tree Conservation Plan to its August meeting to allow more time for public and stakeholder review of recent revisions to the draft plan. The June 11-12 meeting of the Commission also brought Butte County Deputy District Attorney Michael Tufaro to Sacramento to be recognized as 2024 Wildlife Prosecutor of the Year.

Based on input received during the last two Commission meetings from California tribes, the public and stakeholders, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) incorporated additional revisions to the draft Western Joshua Tree Conservation Plan. The latest updates to the draft plan include guidance on assisted migration, removal of specific Joshua tree avoidance distances to reflect flexibility for different types of construction or development projects, updated Joshua tree relocation protocols and the addition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s future suitable habitat climate model data and maps.

For a summary of all changes to the draft Western Joshua Tree Conservation Plan, go to the meeting materials for the June Commission Meeting. The revised draft of the plan can be found on the Western Joshua Tree Conservation Plan web page.

The Commission has requested that anyone planning to submit additional comments, do so no later than July 10 to allow adequate time for consideration ahead of discussion and potential plan approval at the August meeting.

Wildlife Prosecutor of the Year

A highlight of the Commission’s June meeting, Butte County Deputy District Attorney Michael Tufaro was honored as 2024 Wildlife Prosecutor of the Year.

“All of the great work our officers do is complemented by our champions at the various district and city attorney’s offices throughout the state,” said CDFW’s Law Enforcement Division Deputy Chief Erica Manes. “Deputy District Attorney Tufaro is more than a prosecutor — he is a true steward of California’s natural heritage. His integrity, leadership and passion for justice make him a standout in our field.”

Tufaro has prosecuted numerous high-impact cases involving wildlife offenders, including one case where a subject poached more than 40 deer, committed a variety of other natural resource crimes and was also found to be in possession of dynamite. Another case saw the conviction of a man who used his fishing boat to drown a buck deer on the Feather River; the man’s boat was forfeited as part of his sentence.

“When we don’t take care of the environment and we allow people to abuse it, it’s not just an individual victim, it’s everybody in California, but not just everybody — it’s the next generation and so on,” Tufaro told commissioners. “That’s why I’m always so honored to be part of any work that California Department of Fish and Wildlife game wardens do because what they are doing is so incredibly meaningful.”

Naming Protected Areas Policy

The Commission approved amendments to its Naming Protected Areas Policy. The policy sets protocol for naming of protected areas — wildlife areas, ecological reserves and marine protected areas.

Additional amendments to the policy call for protected areas to be named in a manner that indicates geographical location and for the Commission to invite tribes with ancestral ties to the protected areas to identify traditional or contemporary tribal names that could be used in combination with names originating from geographical location. Also, no new or renamed protected areas shall be named for any person, living or dead.

Commission President Erika Zavaleta, Vice President Samantha Murray and commissioners Jacque Hostler-Carmesin, Eric Sklar and Darius Anderson were in attendance for both days of the June Commission meeting.

The complete agenda for the meeting, along with supporting information, is available on the Commission website. Archived video of past Commission meetings is available online. The next meeting of the Commission is scheduled for Aug. 13-14 at the California Natural Resources Building, second floor, 715 P St., Sacramento. Participants can attend in person with options for Zoom or by phone; for the agenda and more information visit the Commission website.

Potential regulation changes

Striped bass size limit: The Commission approved notifying the public regarding proposed regulation changes to recreational striped bass harvest size limits. The changes are scheduled for discussion at the August Commission meeting and potential adoption at the Commission’s Oct. 8-9 meeting in Sacramento.

Morro manzanita take: The Commission approved notifying the public of a proposed regulation that would authorize the take of Morro manzanita while a candidate species under the California Endangered Species Act. The proposed regulation provides an exemption from the take prohibition solely for a bridge replacement project in San Luis Obispo County so that the bridge meets seismic design and safety standards. Measures laid out in a habitat mitigation and monitoring plan would compensate for impacts to Morro manzanita. The regulation changes are scheduled for discussion at the August Commission meeting and potential adoption at the Commission’s Oct. 8-9 meeting.

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Media Contacts: 
Krysten Kellum, CDFW Communications, (916) 825-7120
Katie Talbot, CDFW Communications, (916) 204-1381

Fish and Game Commission: Western Burrowing Owl Becomes CESA Candidate; Wildlife Prosecutor of the Year Named; Waterfowlers Hall of Fame Inductees Recognized

Tue, 15 Oct 2024 14:21:12 GMT

The California Fish and Game Commission (Commission) acted on a variety of issues affecting California’s natural resources at its Oct. 9-10 meeting in Sacramento. The public was also able to participate via webinar and by phone.

The Commission unanimously approved naming the western burrowing owl (Athene cunicularia hypugaea) as a candidate for potential listing as a protected species under the California Endangered Species Act. Threats facing burrowing owls in California are direct mortality and permanent habitat loss caused by urbanization and reduction or elimination of their primary burrow excavators — ground squirrels — from grazing and agricultural lands. The Department will undertake a one-year review of the species’ status before the Commission is expected to make a final decision on listing. As a candidate for potential listing, the species is temporarily afforded the same protections as a state-listed endangered or threatened species.

Los Angeles Deputy City Attorney Mark Soto was named Wildlife Prosecutor of the Year for 2023 by the Commission. Soto was nominated by the Department’s Special Operations Unit for his collaborative work with wildlife officers in prosecuting many high-profile cases to protect California’s natural resources. The cases included successful civil prosecutions of businesses for illegal importation, and possession and sale of detrimental restricted species, such as the sale of non-native abalone that threaten the native endangered white and black abalone.

The 2024 California Waterfowlers Hall of Fame inductees were recognized at this Commission meeting. John P. Donnelly, Johnny Ribeiro, Jr., Raymond Saake and Daniel Yparraquirre were honored as individuals who have made significant contributions to enhance and conserve waterfowl and their habitats in California.

The Commission adopted the 2025-26 recreational fishing regulations for federal groundfish in state waters and fillet requirements for select groundfish. The action eliminates minimum size limits for certain species, modifies fillet-at-sea requirements, and clarifies rules regarding possession of groundfish aboard vessels while being transported through closed areas or areas with different fishing limits. These regulations are consistent with and complementary to groundfish regulations in federal waters. When effective, new groundfish regulations will be posted to the Department’s groundfish regulations website.

The Commission approved a major amendment to an experimental fishing permit testing pop-up gear in an experimental fishery for brown box crab and king crab. Amendments include extending the maximum trap service interval from 96 hours (4 days) to 168 hours (7 days) and removing the clause exempting delays due to weather.

Deer Creek (including Blue Creek) and Summit City Creek — the two largest tributaries to the Mokelumne River — were added to the Commission-designated Wild Trout Waters Policy to support self-sustaining populations of non-native or native trout outside of their historic range and provide anglers with an opportunity to catch wild trout in a manner that promotes conservation. For more information on the designation and body of water, visit the Designated Wild and Heritage Trout Waters website.

The Commission also approved listing Bear Lake buckwheat (Eriogonum microtheca var. lacus-ursi) as a candidate for potential listing as an endangered species under CESA. Bear Lake buckwheat has only a single known occurrence on the south shore of Big Bear Lake in San Bernardino County, where the species is primarily threatened by habitat modification or destruction from potential development of private property where it grows.

Recognition came for El Dorado County resident Scott Lyons, who is the 500th angler to complete the Heritage Trout Challenge. To reach this milestone, Lyons caught a California golden trout, a McCloud River redband trout, a steelhead from the Trinity River, a coastal cutthroat trout, a Goose Lake redband trout and a Lahontan cutthroat trout — all within their historic watersheds. The Heritage Trout Challenge promotes native trout restoration efforts while encouraging anglers to explore new waters to experience California’s diverse fishing opportunities.

Commission President Samantha Murray, Vice President Erika Zavaleta and commissioners Jacque Hostler-Carmesin, Eric Sklar and Darius Anderson participated in person, with Commission and department staff present throughout the meeting. Vice President Zavaleta arrived mid-day for the first day of the meeting and Commissioner Hostler-Carmesin was not in attendance for the second day of the meeting.

The agenda for this meeting, along with supporting information, is available on the Commission website. Archived video of past Commission meetings is available online. The next California Fish and Game Commission meeting is scheduled to occur in Sacramento Dec. 11-12, 2024. Participants can attend via Zoom, phone or in person at the Natural Resources Headquarters Building’s auditorium, 715 P St., Sacramento.

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Media Contacts:
Krysten Kellum, CDFW Communications, (916) 825-7120
Taylor Williams, CDFW R3 Manager, (916) 203-1362

California Department of Fish and Wildlife and California Fish and Game Commission News Release:
San Diego Dep. City Attorney Named 2022 Wildlife Prosecutor of the Year

Wed, 14 Jun 2023 16:51:29 GMT

San Diego Deputy City Attorney (DCA) Jordan B. DuBois has been named 2022 Wildlife Prosecutor of the Year, the California Fish and Game Commission and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) jointly announced today.

San Diego’s citizens are known for their passion for protecting their natural resources, their marine resources particularly. DCA Jordan DuBois embodies those same values. When he was assigned his first few poaching cases, he prosecuted them vigorously with the goal of taking poachers out of business and setting an example for others to follow.

“Better prosecutions among elected city attorneys and district attorneys have been a priority of mine since I was appointed in 2015,” said Eric Sklar, President of the California Fish and Game Commission. “It is my pleasure to recognize Deputy City Attorney DuBois for his excellent work. His efforts serve as an example to prosecutors throughout California.”

As an example, in 2021, a commercial lobster fisherman who was a known repeat poaching offender was contacted on the opening week of commercial lobster fishing season. The fisherman was found in possession of undersize spiny lobsters and did not have his required commercial lobster logbook on board. Several weeks before the incident, wildlife officers found the same fisherman sport fishing in the South La Jolla State Marine Reserve, an area off limits to fishing. DuBois prosecuted the cases vigorously and gained convictions for the violations. Another commercial fisherman was found in possession of undersize spiny lobsters and was prosecuted accordingly. That conviction was ultimately used to revoke the individual’s commercial fishing license. While most commercial lobster fishermen and women are compliant with commercial fishing regulations, DuBois’ reputation for aggressive prosecution of commercial fishing violations resonated with the fleet bringing increased compliance.

“We have long known how fortunate the City of San Diego is to have Jordan working diligently to protect the abundant, but fragile, natural resources here,” City Attorney Mara W. Elliott said. “For the Commission to bestow this honor on him invigorates the whole team of prosecutors and investigators who help to successfully prosecute these cases in collaboration with the wildlife officers at the California Department of Fish and Wildlife."

DCA DuBois has also been the lead prosecutor on several commercial passenger fishing vessel (CPFV) cases. In 2022, DuBois prosecuted a San Diego based CPFV for taking a gross overlimit of 78 bluefin tuna. The vessel was also in violation of several logbook/recordkeeping regulations. The owner operator received a fine, a restitution to the fish processor estimated at more than $5,000, along with a refund to all its passengers at an approximate $17,000 cost.

DuBois’ efforts are not limited to commercial fish cases. DuBois has been an important ally in prosecuting ivory trafficking cases. Beginning in 2019, with a major ivory trafficking case that was the first of its kind prosecuted in San Diego, DuBois helped obtain convictions on multiple violations resulting in more than $500,000 in fines, 364 days in custody and 200 hours of volunteer work per defendant at the San Diego Zoo. More than 300 pieces of ivory worth more than $1 million were forfeited.

“As a statewide law enforcement agency, CDFW wildlife officers work with hundreds of city attorneys, district attorneys and their deputies throughout California,” said David Bess, CDFW Deputy Director and Chief of the Law Enforcement Division. “Deputy City Attorney DuBois’ solid prosecutions have consistently resulted in meaningful dispositions. His work shines as an example for other prosecutors to follow.”

CDFW’s wildlife officers have developed an excellent partnership with DCA DuBois in the years since DuBois began prosecuting environmental cases. The greatest beneficiary of that partnership has been the natural resources of San Diego. For these reasons, DCA Jordan DuBois was selected by the Commission and CDFW as the 2022 Wildlife Prosecutor of the Year.

Media contact:
Capt. Patrick Foy, CDFW Law Enforcement 916-508-7095

Ventura County Deputy District Attorney Named 2021 Wildlife Prosecutor of the Year

Fri, 17 Jun 2022 11:12:38 GMT

Ventura County Senior Deputy District Attorney (SDDA) Karen Wold has been named 2021 Wildlife Prosecutor of the Year, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) and California Fish and Game Commission announced this week.

“Senior Deputy DA Karen Wold has taken several complicated investigations by CDFW’s wildlife officers and turned them into successful prosecutions, thereby making it clear that poaching and pollution crimes will not be tolerated in Ventura County,” said David Bess, CDFW Deputy Director and Chief of the Law Enforcement Division.

SDDA Karen Wold and her team of investigators from the Consumer and Environmental Protection Unit have been valuable partners and a trusted resource for wildlife officers. For years, Wold has led the charge to hold poaching and pollution violators in Ventura County accountable through effective prosecution and assessment of criminal and civil penalties. Those penalties range from fines, permanent and temporary injunctions, imprisonment, cost recovery, educational outreach signage and the procurement of supplies and equipment to help various agencies continue to protect the state’s natural resources.

“We are very proud of Senior Deputy District Attorney Karen Wold’s achievements and are grateful to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife for their collaboration and recognition of her work,” said Erik Nasarenko, Ventura County District Attorney. “Karen is a dedicated prosecutor — she works hard each day to enforce laws that protect the environment and wildlife in our beautiful state.”

Over the years, the Consumer and Environmental Protection Unit has been responsible for securing some favorable dispositions against businesses that pollute in Ventura County. Most notably, a civil settlement in 2016 against Crimson Pipeline totaled nearly $1.6 million in penalties, costs and natural resource damage restitution.

More recently, however, SDDA Wold was vital in securing a settlement against a local commercial fishing vessel operator who allowed toxic substances to flow into the waters of Channel Islands Harbor. In June 2021, wildlife officers from the patrol boat Swordfish observed a commercial squid seiner exiting Ventura Harbor after conducting an off-load of market squid. The officers monitored the vessel, knowing they were most likely heading out of the harbor to dump their excess tank water, known as “stick-water.” Stick water is deleterious to aquatic life due to its ability to create an oxygen deficient environment and create increased amounts of lethal ammonia. Because of its deleterious nature to fish, commercial fishermen are required to dump it outside of state waters, defined as at least three miles offshore.

After boarding the vessel and conducting interviews, officers determined the vessel dumped the toxic water just outside the breakwater and well inside the boundaries of state waters. The case was turned over to SDDA Wold and her team, and they recently settled the case for a civil penalty of $20,000. Included in that penalty was funding set aside for educational signage inside the harbor, most specifically at the commercial squid processing dock, that addresses the regulations and deleterious nature of stick water.

In February 2021, wildlife officers from CDFW’s Office of Spill Prevention and Response responded to reports of excessive amounts of paint debris coating nearby vessels and rocks along the jetty. Through investigation, the officers determined a local commercial fishing vessel operator was sanding their deck and hull without any containment setup. The case was turned over to SDDA Wold and her team, and they promptly went to work to reach a settlement. In the end, the violator agreed to pay $20,000 in fines with nearly $15,000 of that earmarked for oil spill response equipment.

SDDA Wold and her team not only help with marine environmental prosecutions, but they also step in to help with some of the more egregious fish and wildlife crimes that take place in Ventura County. In July 2019, wildlife officers investigated the killing of a collared mountain lion in the Simi Hills, Ventura County. The investigation revealed that a worker at a local college shot and killed a mountain lion that was being monitored via a GPS collar. After killing the lion, the suspect cut off the GPS collar to cover up his crime. He then drove the collar and the lion carcass to two different locations and dumped them several miles from the kill site. Wold prosecuted this case with the utmost seriousness and after several meetings, the suspect ultimately pled guilty to the charge of unlawfully killing a mountain lion and was sentenced to 30 days in jail, 30 days in a work release program, 240 hours of community service at a local animal shelter and three years of summary probation.

“Senior Deputy DA Wold exemplifies the type of prosecutor who can take a poaching or pollution crime investigation and turn into a successful prosecution that not only holds the violator accountable but serves as a warning to others that they too will be held accountable for similar violations,” said Commission President Samantha Murray. “The Commission created this award for prosecutors like Wold to acknowledge good work and to set an example for other prosecutors.”

CDFW is proud of the partnership established through years of collaboration with SDDA Wold and thankful for her leadership in protecting the natural resources of Ventura County.

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Media Contacts:
Assistant Chief Eric Kord, CDFW Law Enforcement Division, (619) 921-5959
Jordan Traverso, CDFW Communications, (916) 212-7352

CDFW News

California Fish and Game Commission: Joshua Tree Conservation Plan Review Bumped to August; Butte County’s Tufaro Named Wildlife Prosecutor of the Year

Fish and Game Commission: Western Burrowing Owl Becomes CESA Candidate; Wildlife Prosecutor of the Year Named; Waterfowlers Hall of Fame Inductees Recognized

California Department of Fish and Wildlife and California Fish and Game Commission News Release: San Diego Dep. City Attorney Named 2022 Wildlife Prosecutor of the Year

Ventura County Deputy District Attorney Named 2021 Wildlife Prosecutor of the Year

California Department of Fish and Wildlife and California Fish and Game Commission News Release:
San Diego Dep. City Attorney Named 2022 Wildlife Prosecutor of the Year