Coastal DA Honored, Aug. 21

The Lincoln County District Attorney was selected recently to receive the seventh presentation of an award to a prosecutor in Oregon for their support, hard work, dedication, and efforts in enforcing fish and wildlife laws and commitment to the preservation of Oregon’s natural resources. On August 14, 2014, Lincoln County District Attorney Michelle Branam was presented with the “2013 Wildlife Prosecutor of the Year Award” in front of her peers at the Oregon District Attorneys Association summer conference held last week in Bend. The award sponsored by the Oregon Sportsmen’s Coalition, was presented by Captain Jeff Samuels, Oregon State Police (OSP) Fish and Wildlife Division Director, Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife Watershed Manager Chip Dale, and Ty Stubblefield, Field Administrator for the Oregon Hunters Association. Michelle Branam has served for almost ten years as a Deputy and Chief Deputy for the Lincoln County District Attorney’s Office before being appointed District Attorney by Governor John Kitzhaber earlier this year. Through her hard work and partnership with area law enforcement, she has garnered a great deal of respect for her commitment to consistently prosecuting fish and wildlife crimes. The South Coast Team of the OSP Fish and Wildlife Division has a great working relationship with DA Branam who shows support for the protection of natural resources. On her own time, Branam even attended Marine Board training to better understand recreational boating enforcement and completed both drift boat and jet boat operation training. As Lincoln County Chief Deputy, Branam was responsible for prosecuting the bulk of serious criminal cases in the county. She was also instrumental in prosecuting several environmental cases where actions resulted in local habitat restoration projects, including a high profile water pollution case involving a local sand and gravel company which received a misdemeanor conviction of Water Pollution in the Second Degree and a $10,000 fine.