A Hall County game warden has been named the 2020 Game Warden of the Year by the Georgia Department of Natural Resources Law Enforcement Division.
Ryan Locke is the Boating Safety Officer for Lake Lanier, and according to information from DNR officials, Locke checked 155 hunting licenses, 217 fishing licenses and 490 boats over the past year. In addition, he documented 183 citations and 186 written warnings for a total of 369 contacts
Away from the lake, Locke investigated a poaching case and gathered enough evidence to identify 63 violations on seven different poachers. The violations included hunting deer at night, hunting from a vehicle, hunting from a public road, possession of over the limit and numerous license offenses.
Locke was the Torch Award winner for the Law Enforcement Division in 2019.
Game Warden Dean Gibson, who is assigned to Talbot County in west central Georgia, was named the recipient of the James R. Darnell Award, an honor given to the runner up to Game Warden of the Year.
