For years, the DNR’s Large Carnivore Division has dismissed our observations, mocked our concerns as "fairy tales," and used shifting word games to protect wolves while our deer herd suffers.
We have put together a formal, 9-point grievance letter backed by state civil service rules and biological facts that is being delivered directly to our Upper Peninsula State Representatives, Senators, and the Natural Resources Commission.
We need the legislature to step in and force accountability. Please click the link below to sign your name electronically and share this post into every UP hunting group you belong to. Let's make our voices heard!

To: Members of the Michigan Legislature & The Michigan Natural Resources Commission
Subject: Formal Grievance and Demand for Accountability Regarding Large Carnivore Management and Public Trust Violations

Dear Representatives and Commissioners,

We write to you as license-paying sportspeople and residents of the Upper Peninsula to formally log a grievance regarding the ongoing, systemic disconnect between the Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and the citizens who fund its conservation footprint.
For over a decade, the public messaging from the DNR’s Large Carnivore Division—specifically spearheaded by Wildlife Biologist Brian Roell—has continuously alienated local communities, manipulated data based on the target audience, and shown open contempt for the sportspeople of this state.
Below is the definitive record of documented comments and actions that have shattered our trust in the agency's large carnivore management:
 
Record of Documented Public Disconnects and Comments

1. The "Recreational Opportunity" Phrasing: Reducing the cultural, ecological, and conservation-management necessity of a wolf hunt down to a trivial desire for "recreation," actively erasing the management role that hunting historically serves in wildlife conservation.
2. The "Little Red Riding Hood" Insult: Dismissing hunters' real-world encounters with trailing packs, livestock degradation, and decimated deer carcasses as uneducated, emotional reactions based on childhood fairy tales.
3. The False Moral Equivalence: Claiming in public forums that local, license-paying sportspeople and out-of-state, extremist anti-hunting activist groups are "equally guilty" of spreading myths and manipulating facts, lumping dedicated conservationists in with groups that contribute nothing to Michigan's wildlife coffers.
4. The "Coyote Myth" Scolding: Talking down to local woodsmen regarding canine hybridization and trail camera sightings, using an academic tone to scold residents rather than addressing localized canid size fluctuations.
5. The "Incomplete" TV Comments: Downplaying wolf predation on Michigan Out-of-Doors TV to such an extent that the DNR was forced to issue an official public apology and clarification note, admitting his statement was "incomplete and lacked necessary context."
6. The "I Can Say This Here" Video: Admitting to an online pro-wolf advocacy audience on YouTube that lethal management and hunting language are just political tools used by the state to keep hunters quiet—proving that the agency treats sportspeople as a demographic to be politically "managed" rather than respected partners.
7. The Great Lakes Wolf Rebrand: Denying the existence of "coywolves" to local hunters face-to-face while simultaneously utilizing the population's coyote-hybrid genetics to classify them as "Great Lakes Wolves" in federal court to maintain strict Endangered Species Act protections [8.1].
8. The Macro Data vs. Ground Reality Contradiction: Claiming that UP deer are "thriving" based on high-level multi-year averages, flatly contradicting the DNR's own field necropsies showing widespread winter starvation, bone marrow fat depletion, and collapsed fawn recruitment.
 
Violations of Law, Ethics, and Bureaucratic Mandates
This record reveals a systemic failure within the Michigan DNR that goes beyond bad public relations. When analyzed against Michigan Civil Service Commission Rules and State Conservation Laws, the behavior of the Large Carnivore Division demonstrates a clear breach of public trust and official employee directives.
Breach of the Public Standards of Conduct (Michigan Law MCL 15.342): Under state law, public employees are strictly bound to use their official positions to serve the public interest impartially. Presenting contradictory data based on the audience violates the mandate that public officers remain objective brokers of truth.
Violation of Civil Service Rule 2-21 (Interpreted Standards of Conduct): State workers are explicitly forbidden from engaging in conduct that creates a public perception of bias, dishonesty, or contempt for the citizens they serve. Routinely mocking the observations of the license-paying sportsmen who fund their salaries directly violates the core spirit of public service ethics.
Failure of Scientific Mandate (Proposal G of 1996): Michigan law mandates that wildlife management decisions must be based on the "best available science." Using shifting genetic semantics to maintain federal courtroom protections while aggressively telling local sportsmen that those same genetics do not exist is a manipulation of science to fit a pre-determined political goal [8.1].
We urge your office to initiate legislative oversight, demand a review of civil service rule compliance within the Wildlife Division, and hold the DNR accountable to the people of the Upper Peninsula.

Respectfully submitted,

The Undersigned Citizens, Sportspeople, and Organizations of Michigan.