jmagee,
Bad day, no. In fact this is day 1 of a 3 day weekend for me!
I do take offense to people who make snap judgments or public statements about the decisions police officers (Game Wardens included) make, even though they do not know the facts or protocols they were following. You see this quite often with public media across the country.
To answer your question. "Aren't the fish and wildlife officer supposed to protect and serve the public along with our resources!!!??" Yes, they take an oath to serve and protect. Nowhere in the oath does it say anything about taking unnecessary risks or putting their life in danger for an elk which was harassed.
I would be willing to be that same Warden would enter that canyon without hesitation if the suspect committed a violent crime or was wanted by the law. He would also enter the canyon if you or I was injured/trapped and in need of help.
In this case the Warden had all the evidence he needed by taking a photograph of the suspect. Days later the suspect was identified and prosecuted for the offense. Case closed. I feel the Warden did a great job and would not expect him/her to handle the situation any differently in the future.
To end my little rant I have another link to click on. It is Paul Harvey?s take on Police Officers. Listen carefully to the words, then sit and think about them a bit. Remember, Police are humans too; they laugh, they cry, they bleed and they have families. They are doing the work that most will not do. They have to make quick decisions and yes, sometime will choose wrong. They are highly trained and will protect and serve without question.