Two men pleaded guilty and have been sentenced in U.S. District Court in Casper for taking part in illegally killing a bull elk in Oct. 2006 near Ten Sleep.

James M. Dovenberg, 68, of West Linn, Ore., was fined $12,000 for aiding and abetting in the trafficking of illegal wildlife. He was also given three years of probation and a two-year suspension of worldwide hunting privileges.

Jon R. Gleason, 70, of Custer, Wash., also pleaded guilty to trafficking of illegal wildlife. He received $8,500 in fines and restitution and three years of probation and lost his hunting license for two years. He was also ordered to forfeit the bull elk mount to the Wyoming Game and Fish Department



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Do the Feds have the power to ban worldwide hunting privileges?

Here's a bit more info from WYG&FD:


TWO MEN SENTENCED FOR FEDERAL WILDLIFE VIOLATIONS INVOLVING ILLEGAL KILLING OF ELK NEAR TEN SLEEP


CASPER – Two men have pleaded guilty and have been sentenced in U.S. District Court in Casper following their conviction for taking part in the illegal killing of a bull elk near Ten Sleep in October 2006. A concerned citizen’s tip about trophy elk being illegally taken led to the convictions.

James M. Dovenberg, 68, of West Linn, Ore., was fined $12,000 for aiding and abetting in the trafficking of illegal wildlife on Dec. 20. In addition, he was placed on three years probation and received a two-year suspension of worldwide hunting privileges.

Jon R. Gleason, 70, of Custer, Wash., also pleaded guilty to trafficking of illegal wildlife. On Dec. 20 he received $8,500 in fines and restitution and three years probation and two years of hunting license revocations. He was also ordered to forfeit the bull elk mount to the Wyoming Game and Fish Department.

These sentences were handed down following the July 2011 felony sentencing and $20,000 fines of James S. Robinson, of West Linn, Ore., for Lacey Act violations involving a different elk. The Lacey Act violation comes into play when any illegally taken elk parts are transported across state lines.

The case started when the Game and Fish’s Investigative Unit received a tip in January 2010. Unit members traveled to Oregon in February and June of 2010, and were assisted by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Oregon State Police with the investigation.

The federal charges were filed against Robinson, a real estate developer, Sept. 23, 2010, in federal court in Casper. Robinson pleaded guilty to violating the Lacey Act on March 4, 2011, pursuant to a plea agreement negotiated with his attorneys.

The Lacey Act carries a maximum penalty of up to five years in federal prison, $250,000 in fines and three years of supervised probation following imprisonment. The Lacey Act also has provisions for the payment of restitution and forfeiture of any wildlife and any vehicles or equipment used in the crime.

The penalties imposed on Dovenberg and Gleason were for their participation in the commission of the crime.

Robinson also forfeited a head and shoulder mount of the elk to the Game and Fish. The 6-by-7-point antlers scored around 350 points on the Boone and Crockett scale.

Mike Ehlebracht, who is the Investigative Unit supervisor, said “Law enforcement and the court systems take these wildlife violations very, very seriously. It is important to protect this hunting privilege so every hunter has an equal opportunity to draw these cherished licenses.”

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Do the Feds have the power to ban worldwide hunting privileges?

That's a good question. I'm not a lawyer but I suspect that the Feds can't really "ban" worldwide hunting privileges per se. The "ban" is probably more of an agreement or condition of parole.

There's nothing keeping him from travelling to another country. Once he's out of US Federal jurisdiction what's to keep him from hunting there? Or hunting in a high fence operation where no license or other offical authorization is required. The problem comes if / when his Federal parole officer finds out about it. Then he's in really deep doo-doo.

So for all practical intents and purposes it's a ban.

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Mike Ehlebracht, who is the Investigative Unit supervisor, said “Law enforcement and the court systems take these wildlife violations very, very seriously. It is important to protect this hunting privilege so every hunter has an equal opportunity to draw these cherished licenses.”

This guy shot one elk. If the government is so worried about "equal opportunities to draw cherished licenses" why did they spend countless millions of tax dollars to import exotic predators from Canada that kill God-only-knows how many elk each every year?

WTH does poaching have to do with wolves, LOL! It sounds like you are another that doesn't take poaching, which is stealing resources from us citizens, seriously! These guys were just a little piece of the iceberg in a big investigation that is still ongoing. The guys hunted with an outfitter/rancher and his family that were doing all kinds of illegal activities over a number of years, including allowing nonresidents to kill animals on resident licenses, taking that big bull on a cow license where tags are hard to draw, etc. The tougher the law is on this type of crap, hopefully the fewer people will commit violations in the future!

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WTH does poaching have to do with wolves, LOL! It sounds like you are another that doesn't take poaching, which is stealing resources from us citizens, seriously! These guys were just a little piece of the iceberg in a big investigation that is still ongoing. The guys hunted with an outfitter/rancher and his family that were doing all kinds of illegal activities over a number of years, including allowing nonresidents to kill animals on resident licenses, taking that big bull on a cow license where tags are hard to draw, etc. The tougher the law is on this type of crap, hopefully the fewer people will commit violations in the future!

The comment on wolves was a poke at government double-speak. You're right, it had nothing to do with the story itself. Call it bad timing on my part if you want but I stand by the comment.

I DO NOT take poaching lightly, nor will you ever find me defending those who commit this crime. Nowhere in my repsonse did I make any comment about the punishment not fitting the crime. $12K, 3 years probation and 2 year loss of hunting is actually a bit on the light side; $12,000 was probably pocket change for this guy. And simply telling him to "play nice" for the next 3 year is a joke. Spending some time behind bars would have been in order IMHO.

Now you're talking---sorry I read you wrong!!!

Here are a couple more! A couple of weiners!


A federal judge in Billings on Friday imposed hefty fines and probation and suspended hunting privileges for a father and son from Salem, Ore., who admitted running a poaching operation for five years at a Park County ranch.

Chief U.S. District Judge Richard Cebull said big fines were needed to warn potential poachers what they face if they illegally take Montana wildlife.

Cebull fined Richard "Dick" Weiner, 73, $40,000, and his son, Richard "Matt" Weiner, 42, $20,000. The money will go to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

"It's hunters like you and your dad that give ethical hunters in the sport a bad name," Cebull told Matt Weiner.

The judge said the Weiners had their own "poaching paradise" on land they leased at the Foster Ranch in the Shields Valley. The most "repugnant" part of the case, Cebull said, was when Matt Weiner and a client in 2009 killed two buck antelope, threw the first one in a gully because it was too small and took the second one back to Oregon.

Cebull called Dick Weiner "the driving force" behind the scheme, in which the Weiners charged friends and clients $1,500 to $2,500 to hunt on the ranch and used others' tags or no tags on big game animals, including elk, deer and antelope.

The judge also sentenced both to three years of probation and ordered $20,000 restitution to be paid jointly. The restitution will go to the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks.

Cebull also banned the Weiners from hunting, fishing and trapping for life in Montana and from hunting for life anywhere in the world.

As a convicted felon, Dick Weiner also is prohibited from possessing firearms. The judge allowed Matt Weiner, who was convicted of misdemeanors, to have a shotgun for his hunting-dog training business.

Both men apologized and said they were embarrassed and ashamed.

Dick Weiner said he has never wasted or improperly tagged any animal he has killed. He asked for mercy, saying he was on Social Security and that the dog-training business he and his son have has suffered in the poor economy.

Matt Weiner said he realizes he was stealing wildlife from Montana. At the time, he said, it "seemed OK and I know it wasn't."

Dick Weiner pleaded guilty in August to felony conspiracy to violate the Lacey Act, which regulates the interstate sale, transportation and purchase of wildlife.

Matt Weiner also pleaded guilty to felony conspiracy and four misdemeanor violations of the law.

At sentencing, Cebull allowed Matt Weiner to withdraw his plea on the felony and dismissed the count after the Weiners' attorney, Brian Kohn of Billings, said he did a poor job representing the son. Matt Weiner didn't realize he was pleading guilty to a felony until after his plea had been accepted, Kohn said.

Chad Murphy, FWP regional investigator, said the ranch's owner was unaware of the illegal activities, but that the owner's stepson and his wife, Brent and Jennifer Foster, were charged with state wildlife violations.

A third Oregon man, David "Bud" LaRoche, also was convicted of federal misdemeanors and is awaiting sentencing in federal court.

Stories like this never cease to amaze me.

What is it about hunting that brings out the worst in some people? Most of these guys are probably reasonable, law-abiding citizens in their daily lives. They wouldn't even think of shoplifting a pack of gum. But put a gun in their hands and they go nuts and break every law in the book.

It cuts across all social and economic lines. There's the rural poor who say they 'have' to poach to "feed the family" but have plenty of cash for beer, cigarettes and gas for the quad or snowmobile. And then there's the white-collar businessmen like the real estate developer in the first story. If you've got that kind money and just "have" to kill a lot of animals, why not go to Africa? The $20,000 fine for poaching one elk would have paid for one hell of a plains game hunt. The hunter gets to scratch his trigger finger and the locals get the $$ and the meat. It would have been a win-win for everybody.

Why is it so hard for some people to play by the rules when hunting?

Lack of ethics & integrity along with greed I would guess!!!