Muley Crazy
Member
Could of had better fines but over all I like it !!
Ignoring a hunter check station has cost two Boise men more than just the $121 fine for failure to stop.
Derek Smith, 41, and Joseph Eden, 38, both of Boise, pleaded guilty in Fourth District Court in Ada County this month to possession of three unlawfully taken elk. Both had their hunting privileges revoked for the next decade.
In mid-October, Smith was pulled over for failing to stop at a Fish and Game check station along State Highway 21. During an ensuing conversation, Smith claimed to have killed a female elk on a controlled hunt antlerless elk tag earlier in the hunting season, and then later changed his story.
Further investigation uncovered additional evidence linking Smith with Eden, and search warrants were eventually secured for the residences of both men.
Hidden in a storeroom in Smith's residence, officers discovered a 6x7 set of antlers from an elk poached earlier in the year by Smith. Officers also learned that Smith had killed a spike elk using a rifle during the 2008 archery season.
Officers searching the Eden residence found Eden in the process of butchering the bull elk that belonged to the 6 x 7 set of elk antlers seized from Smith's residence. Officers also discovered evidence of a female elk poached by Eden during the 2008 elk hunting season.
Though the men poached all three elk in Boise County, Smith and Eden were charged with unlawful possession of big game animals in Ada County. In the District Court in Ada County on October 28, the two men initially pleaded innocent to poaching three elk in just over a 12-month period.
"It's a sad fact that for some people, killing wildlife illegally is a routine matter," Senior Conservation Officer Marshall Haynes said. "These animals are true trophies that many Idaho sportsmen would love to have the opportunity to hunt."
Facing multiple charges, the two men changed their pleas to guilty December 16.
Smith's sentence included a 10-year hunting license revocation, $240 in fines and court costs, and $1,500 in restitution to Fish and Game. He also was sentenced to 180 days in jail - 160 days suspended - and two years probation.
Eden's sentence included a 10-year hunting license revocation, $240 in fines and court costs, and $750 in restitution to Fish and Game. He also was sentenced to 180 days in jail - 165 suspended - and two years probation.
Separate charges of transferring elk tags were dismissed in the plea agreement.
Ignoring a hunter check station has cost two Boise men more than just the $121 fine for failure to stop.
Derek Smith, 41, and Joseph Eden, 38, both of Boise, pleaded guilty in Fourth District Court in Ada County this month to possession of three unlawfully taken elk. Both had their hunting privileges revoked for the next decade.
In mid-October, Smith was pulled over for failing to stop at a Fish and Game check station along State Highway 21. During an ensuing conversation, Smith claimed to have killed a female elk on a controlled hunt antlerless elk tag earlier in the hunting season, and then later changed his story.
Further investigation uncovered additional evidence linking Smith with Eden, and search warrants were eventually secured for the residences of both men.
Hidden in a storeroom in Smith's residence, officers discovered a 6x7 set of antlers from an elk poached earlier in the year by Smith. Officers also learned that Smith had killed a spike elk using a rifle during the 2008 archery season.
Officers searching the Eden residence found Eden in the process of butchering the bull elk that belonged to the 6 x 7 set of elk antlers seized from Smith's residence. Officers also discovered evidence of a female elk poached by Eden during the 2008 elk hunting season.
Though the men poached all three elk in Boise County, Smith and Eden were charged with unlawful possession of big game animals in Ada County. In the District Court in Ada County on October 28, the two men initially pleaded innocent to poaching three elk in just over a 12-month period.
"It's a sad fact that for some people, killing wildlife illegally is a routine matter," Senior Conservation Officer Marshall Haynes said. "These animals are true trophies that many Idaho sportsmen would love to have the opportunity to hunt."
Facing multiple charges, the two men changed their pleas to guilty December 16.
Smith's sentence included a 10-year hunting license revocation, $240 in fines and court costs, and $1,500 in restitution to Fish and Game. He also was sentenced to 180 days in jail - 160 days suspended - and two years probation.
Eden's sentence included a 10-year hunting license revocation, $240 in fines and court costs, and $750 in restitution to Fish and Game. He also was sentenced to 180 days in jail - 165 suspended - and two years probation.
Separate charges of transferring elk tags were dismissed in the plea agreement.
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