A day in the life: Forest Service Officer

Tawny Hancock, 24, is a law enforcement officer for the United States Forest Service. She has been an LEO for two years and has served in many different parts of the country such as: Stanley, Idaho; Carson City, Nevada; Spanish Fork, Utah; Monticello, Utah; Ogden Utah; and Heber City, Utah. She is currently the LEO stationed in the Heber Ranger District in Heber City. The Heber District resides in the Uinta National Forest, which is headquartered in Provo. She loves her career and said that a lot of what her job entails, most people would consider play - not work.

SP: When did you decide you wanted to become an LEO?

Hancock: The opportunity came to me when I was 20. I was attending Weber State University as a criminal justice major with an emphasis in criminal law. I had planned on going to law school. At the time, I worked as a secretary in the Forest Service Regional Office as a work-study student. Dave Farrell, the special agent in charge of the law enforcement in our region asked me if I was interested in working as an LEO for the Forest Service. He wanted me to join his Student Career Employee Program, in which they help students get a degree with a promise to work for the Forest Service after they graduate. I decided to try it out and I loved it.

SP: What made you decide to work for the Forest Service?

Hancock: The Forest Service is a great agency. They have good pay and great benefits. It's an enjoyable organization to work for. My job is one of the best in the agency, if you ask me. I don't have a boss over my shoulder all the time. I get to do mostly what I want to do. If I am sick of one thing, I can do something else. Nothing is better than driving around in the mountains all day observing nature and animals in their natural habitat. I have always enjoyed hunting, and shooting guns is a large part of my position. I get to do interesting things like ride in Blackhawk helicopters, hunt wild animals and eradicate marijuana.

SP: What are the requirements to become a LEO?

Hancock: You have to have either a bachelor's degree or four years experience in a law enforcement position. You have to do five months at FLETC, the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center, in Brunswick, Georgia. AT FLETC, we had to learn fighting, taking down criminals, shooting, handcuffing and booking, combat and ammunition training, criminal law, how to identify drugs and all of the dangerous criminal activity that we could encounter. Interrogation and criminal profiling were also taught. We did a lot of physical training and learned maneuvers how to overpower the enemy. After that, I had three months of field training in different areas. Field training includes riding with another officer and learning hands-on training in order to get hands-on experience. I learned to ride snowmobiles, four-wheelers and did horse-pack trips in wilderness.

SP: What does your daily job entail?

Hancock: I arrive in the office every morning. I check my e-mail and check in with my boss. Then I head out from there into the forest in my Forest Service Law Enforcement vehicle. I get to drive around the campgrounds and patrol. I have to make sure everything looks orderly. I write tickets to people involved in illegal activity. The job leads me where I need to be. I keep my radio with me at all times in case I get a call. I go where the crime or emergencies happen. Or if there isn't anything going on, I go where I want to. There is usually plenty of activity in my area to keep me busy.

SP: What is the most satisfying part about your job?

Hancock: It feels good to catch the bad guys. I like uncovering the people involved in illegal activity and stopping their criminal behavior. I get to keep the wilderness safe for the people who obey the laws. It's a good feeling to go home every night and know that I have made the world safer by either stopping, ticketing or arresting people doing illegal and dangerous things. The world is safer because I have been working hard. It's nice to help and to be able to serve the public.

SP: What is the most difficult part of your job?

Hancock: Dealing with dumb people who don't understand the laws and try to get away with illegal things is hard to do. It seems that all the stupid people of the world congregate into the forests. It can be very dangerous, so I always have to be on guard. The rare office days when I have to do paper work aren't fun either.

SP: What kinds of wildlife do you encounter while patrolling?

Hancock: I obviously deal with a lot of deer and elk. They are frequent in the campgrounds and forest areas I patrol. Mountain goats, big horn sheep, foxes and coyotes are common in my area. I see lots of eagles in action. When I was stationed in Stanley, there was a lot of salmon that I got to help with at the Salmon River Hatchery. Wolves and bears cause huge problems in our forests, especially with campers and people unfamiliar with the territory. They can get easily scared from unusual noises. I get lots of calls from people scared of the "wildlife," even though they are rarely in real danger.

SP: What is the most exciting experience you've had?

Hancock: The most exciting thing I have done is being able to kill a bear. There was a bear that started coming into a popular campground in Idaho. The campers started feeding the bear, causing it to come around more often. The bear began bothering campers looking for food, so they just kept feeding it. We had tried to catch the bear in a trap to transport it to a safer area, but the trap was not working. People kept chasing it away from the trap. Finally, for the safety of the campers, I was ordered to dispose of the bear. Even though it was difficult to do with so many people near, it was awesome to be able to shoot a bear at work.

SP: What kinds of danger have you encountered in your position?

Hancock: The Russian mafia was huge in Stanley, so we had to deal with them a lot. It was a very risky position to be in because arresting them is more than just messing with just one person. There could be deadly repercussions if I wasn't careful. I have been involved in a high- speed chase with a car because they had been shooting at people. I have eradicated marijuana gardens. I deal a lot with drunken people in campgrounds. Three huge guys with prison tattoos got in my face because I was trying to write them a ticket for drunk and disorderly conduct. They had threatened to shoot their neighbors. Much of what I do can be dangerous, and since I work alone I have to be especially careful.

SP: How does being a female in a male-dominated position affect you?

Hancock: I have to treat people differently than the male officers do. I can't go in and be aggressive with people like the big men doing my job can. Males can intimidate people, but that doesn't work for me. I try to use my mouth instead of my fists. Among my peers, women are looked on as incompetent. I have to prove myself to the male officers that I am a good worker. Plus, I also deal with the people who hit on me all the time. I hear sexual innuendos constantly that I just have to ignore.

SP: How has going into law enforcement affected your personal life?

Hancock: It's been very hard on my marriage. All the training has made me have to be away from my husband. We got engaged, and I had to leave the next day for FLETC for three months. My first position was five hours from home, and I was a newlywed. It was difficult to only see my husband a couple days a week or a few times a month. I also work long hours and always weekends when people are out in the forests, so it makes it hard to have much of a personal life at all.

SP: How has being a LEO changed your outlook on life?

Hancock: It's made me realize there are more dangerous criminals in the world than most people think. I am a lot more careful everywhere I go. I notice things about people that I would not have noticed before. I can tell if people are doing drugs, whereas before that never was noticeable to me. I have to make judgments quickly about people in order to stay safe.

SP: What advice do you have for someone considering a job in law enforcement or with the Forest Service?

Hancock: I would recommend doing a ride along before committing to doing it for your entire life. It's definitely not a job for everyone. You have no backup, and you are in the middle of nowhere. You have to be tough. You need to like the mountains, hunting and camping. If you enjoy those things, it may be a great job for you.