Profile
Marine and Trail Enforcement Bureau
The Marine and Trail Enforcement Bureau is staffed year-round by two full-time Deputies and one Sergeant. During the summer, several other Deputies serve on boat patrol and augment the unit. The primary focus of the unit includes boat, snowmobile, and ATV patrol. All three of these patrol functions are funded in large part by the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) through a reimbursement program.
Marine Enforcement
The unit is responsible for patrol and enforcement on Dane County lakes year-round. Although there are 37 lakes within Dane County, boat patrol is primarily focused on lakes Mendota, Monona, Waubesa, and Kegonsa. Response to lake rescues, accidents, or drowning investigations include all the county lakes, as well as 14 miles of the Wisconsin River. The unit has a patrol boat housed on each of the four main lakes, with two boats on the lake Mendota. An additional boat is kept on a trailer for responses to the outlying lakes.
Due to the unique nature of the responsibilities of the Marine and Trail Enforcement Bureau, full time staff members are assigned a take-home truck with a four-wheel-drive. The vehicles are used to tow all of the previously mentioned equipment, as well as carry various types of rescue equipment. We have staff on-call 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.