The Growing Lawlessness in California’s Forests
A disturbing incident involving the kidnapping of two federal biologists in Northern California highlights growing concerns over lawlessness in remote forest areas. The event underscores a lack of federal oversight and the potential for unpredictable violence in public lands.
Why it matters
It raises questions about the safety of government employees and the management of public lands in the face of increasing anti-government sentiment.
Two frog biologists were kidnapped in the woods. More bizarre situations may come.
Stefan Schmid / Gallery Stock September 1, 2026, 7 AM ET Share Save O n the day of the kidnapping , the campground at Gumboot Lake happened to be nearly empty, so Joseph Charles Henrichsen was one of the only people to see the two Forest Service biologists pull up in their pickup truck. Federal employees didn’t visit all that much—campers who’d been coming to the small alpine lake for years told me they’d never seen a ranger on patrol in these Northern California woods. But some of the regulars had noticed the “frog people,” as one called them, quietly collecting their specimens the previous summer. These particular biologists, both women, were there to survey the Cascades frog, whose well-being can help signal the health of the overall ecosystem.
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