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Arkansas Wildlife Officers Assist Iowa With Poaching Cases

Arkansas Wildlife Officers Assist Iowa With Poaching Cases

Arkansas Game & Fish Commission

JEFFERSON, Iowa –-(AmmoLand.com)- What began from a chance encounter on a trespassing complaint two years ago has led to 18 people, from six states, pleading guilty to various poaching violations. Wildlife officers from the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission helped uncover the poaching violations.

The investigation ended with guilty pleas for illegal taking or possession of whitetail deer, no valid deer tag, illegal use of a deer tag, illegal transportation of a deer and providing false information to a peace officer.

AGFC Chief of Enforcement Mike Knoedl said that Arkansas wildlife officers are constantly working with other states to uncover hunting and fishing violations.

“We work closely with other states. We have a great working relationship with them since we have the same goals – to make sure people follow the rules and violators don’t take advantage of the resource,” Knoedl said.

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources filed 48 state charges that included fines of $7,845 and $85,000 in liquidated damages for 12 illegally taken deer over a four year period in Greene County, Iowa.

Those charged include Daryl Thompson, 52, of Grand Junction, Iowa, Eric Poindexter, 32, Eufaula, Okla., David Miller, 42, of McAlester, Okla., Richard Densmore, 57, Wetumka, Okla., Marvin Autrey, 41, Wagoner, Okla., Anthony Bernhardt, 47, McAlester, Okla., Garrett Patterson, 27, McAlester, Okla., John Keys, 28, Stillwater, Okla., Andrew Oquist, 33, Knoxville, Ark., Randal Hurst, 43, Altus, Ark., Ricky Hurst, 48, Altus, Ark., Erick Hurst, 22, Altus, Ark., Steven Stubblefield, 43, Springfield, Tenn., Bryan Entrikin, 33, Ashland City, Tenn., Timmy Sanford, 29, Springfield, Tenn., Scott Keys, 38, Bossier City, La., Kenneth Gabriel, 59, Butler, Mo., and Tamara Kiner, 46, Grand Junction, Iowa.

The individuals forfeited 19 bows and accessories, 9 tree stands with ladders, 6 mounted deer heads, 5 skull capped deer racks, 1 ground blind, 1 rifle and 1 shotgun. The individuals are in the process of paying their fines and restitution.

The case arose during an unrelated poaching investigation in 2008 when Iowa DNR Conservation Officer Dan Pauley recalled a trespassing report where he had spoke with Daryl Thompson, of Grand Junction. Pauley received additional information from local residents about deer poaching and guiding activity in Greene County over the past few years that lead him back to Thompson.

In 2009, a nonresident who had pleaded guilty to poaching deer, provided information on other poaching activity that lead Pauley to other nonresidents who had similar experiences in Greene County.

Arkansas wildlife officers assist Iowa with poaching cases This information and an analysis of license buying patterns sent Pauley and Iowa Conservation Officer Nathan Haupert to fellow game wardens in Oklahoma and Missouri.

The web started to build and would eventually include poachers in Iowa, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Missouri, Louisiana and Tennessee.

“We interviewed a lot of people on the case and each interview would lead us to more individuals who were involved which would lead to more charges. Most of these interviews were done either over the phone with the suspects or by a game warden from the suspect’s home state. There were days when I would be on the phone for 10 or 12 hours,” said Pauley. “There are likely more deer out there than we know about, but we got them on what we could.”

Thompson likely met some of the individuals through business contacts he made while working out of state, and would line up the land and set up deer stands. Until 2007, many individuals would buy doe tags for use as a reason for them to be deer hunting in the woods while they waited for a trophy buck. The poached deer would not be tagged or reported. The Iowa DNR stopped selling nonresident archery doe tags in 2008.

Pauley said there is no evidence that Thompson profited financially from the arrangement.

Pauley, along with fellow officer Haupert, the Greene County Attorney’s Office and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service lead the six month investigation. Officers from Oklahoma, Tennessee, Arkansas, Louisiana, Missouri and Iowa assisted in the case.

Iowans Charged with Illegal Pursuing of Bear in Arkansas

It seems like poaching turnabout is fair play.

Officials in Arkansas filed charges against Justin Thompson, 22, Grand Junction, Iowa, for hunting bear out of season and without a license. The Iowa officers assisted with that investigation. Scott Kiner, 48, from Grand Junction, Iowa, was charged with aiding and abetting hunting bear out of season. A juvenile from Iowa was issued a written warning.

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Pa Game Commission Offers Chronic Wasting Disease Advice To Hunters Headed Out Of State
Important changes made to Pennsylvania’s parts ban.

Pennsylvania Game Commission

HARRISBURG, Pa –-(AmmoLand.com)- With thousands of Pennsylvania hunters heading off to hunt big game in other states and Canadian provinces, Pennsylvania Game Commission Executive Director Carl G. Roe reminds hunters that, in an effort to prevent the introduction of Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) into the Commonwealth, the agency prohibits hunters from importing specific carcass parts from members of the deer family – including mule deer, elk and moose – from 14 states and two Canadian provinces.

Roe noted that this importation ban is a revised executive order signed into effect in May, and affects hunters heading to: Colorado, Illinois, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, New York (only from CWD containment area), Oklahoma, South Dakota, Utah, West Virginia (only from Hampshire County), Wisconsin and Wyoming; as well as the Canadian provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan.

Roe emphasized that the new executive order prohibits hunters from bringing back the tissue described below from any cervid from these states or provinces, whether the animal was taken from the wild or from a captive, high-fence operation.

The specific carcass parts, where the CWD prions (the causative agent) concentrates in cervids, that cannot be brought back to Pennsylvania by hunters are:

• the head (including brain, tonsils, eyes and lymph nodes)
• spinal cord/backbone
• spleen
• skull plate with attached antlers, if visible brain or spinal cord tissue is present
• cape, if visible brain or spinal cord tissue is present
• upper canine teeth, if root structure or other soft tissue is present
• any object or article containing visible brain or spinal cord tissue
• unfinished taxidermy mounts; and brain-tanned hides.

Roe noted that the prohibition does not limit the importation of: meat, without the backbone; cleaned skull plate with attached antlers, if no visible brain or spinal cord tissue is present; tanned hide or raw hide with no visible brain or spinal cord tissue present; cape, if no visible brain or spinal cord tissue is present; upper canine teeth, if no root structure or other soft tissue is present; and finished taxidermy mounts.

Pennsylvania hunters heading to a state with a history of CWD should become familiar with that state’s wildlife regulations and guidelines for the transportation of harvested game animals. Wildlife officials have suggested hunters in areas where CWD is known to exist follow these recommendations to prevent the possible spread of the disease:

• - Do not shoot, handle or consume any animal that appears sick; contact the state wildlife agency if you see or harvest an animal that appears sick.
• - Wear rubber or latex gloves when field-dressing carcasses.
• - Bone out the meat from your animal.
• - Minimize the handling of brain and spinal tissues.
• - Wash hands and instruments thoroughly after field-dressing is completed.
• - Request that your animal is processed individually, without meat from other animals being added to meat from your animal, or process your own meat if you have the tools and ability to do so.
• - Have your animal processed in the endemic area of the state where it was harvested, so that high-risk body parts can be properly disposed of there. Only bring permitted materials back to Pennsylvania.
• - Don’t consume the brain, spinal cord, eyes, spleen, tonsils or lymph nodes of harvested animals. (Normal field-dressing, coupled with boning out a carcass, will remove most, if not all, of these body parts. Cutting away all fatty tissue will help remove remaining lymph nodes.)
• - Consider not consuming the meat from any animal that tests positive for the disease.

Roe said hunters who harvest a deer, elk or moose in a state or province where CWD is known to exist should follow that state’s wildlife agency’s instructions on how and where to submit the appropriate samples to have their animal tested. If, after returning to Pennsylvania, a hunter is notified that his or her game tested positive for CWD, the hunter is encouraged to contact the Game Commission for disposal recommendations and assistance.

The Game Commission, with the assistance of the Pennsylvania and U.S. departments of Agriculture, has conducted tests on more than 18,000 deer and elk that have either died of unknown illnesses, were exhibiting abnormal behavior, or were killed by hunters. No evidence of CWD has been found in any of these samples.

The Game Commission will continue to monitor this disease and collect samples from deer and elk that appear sick or behave abnormally. The agency plans to test all hunter-killed elk and approximately 4,000 hunter-harvested wild deer for CWD again this year.

First identified in 1967, CWD is a transmissible spongiform encephalopathy (TSE) that affects cervids, including all species of deer, elk and moose. It is a progressive and always fatal disease of the nervous system. Scientists theorize CWD is caused by an unknown agent capable of transforming normal brain proteins into an abnormal form.

There currently is no practical way to test live animals for CWD, nor is there a vaccine. Clinical signs include poor posture, lowered head and ears, uncoordinated movement, rough-hair coat, weight loss, increased thirst, excessive drooling, and, ultimately, death. There is currently no scientific evidence that CWD has or can spread to humans, either through contact with infected animals or by eating meat of infected animals. The Center for Disease Control has investigated any connection between CWD and the human forms of TSEs and stated

“the risk of infection with the CWD agent among hunters is extremely small, if it exists at all” and “it is extremely unlikely that CWD would be a food-borne hazard.”

“Hunters spend a lot of time in the woods, and are a valuable source of information to wildlife agencies across the United States,” Roe said. “If a hunter sees a deer or elk behaving abnormally, or dying from unknown causes, contact the state wildlife agency and provide as much specific information as possible about where the animal was seen.”

In 2005, Pennsylvania CWD task force members completed the state’s response plan, which outlines ways to prevent CWD from entering our borders and, in the event CWD is found in Pennsylvania, how to detect it, contain it and work to eradicate it. The task force was comprised of representatives from the Governor’s Office, the Game Commission, the state Department of Agriculture, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the state Department of Health, the state Department of Environmental Protection and the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency, as well as representatives from stakeholder groups including hunters, deer farmers, deer processors and taxidermists. Initiated in 2003, a copy of the final plan can be viewed on the Game Commission’s website (www.pgc.state.pa.us) by clicking on “CWD Update” in the “Quick Clicks” box in the upper right-hand corner of the homepage.

“We know that Pennsylvania hunters are just as concerned about keeping CWD out of Pennsylvania as we are, and we are confident that they will do all they can to protect the Commonwealth’s whitetail and elk populations,” Roe said.

Other information, including tips for taxidermists and meat processors, can be found on the Game Commission’s website (www.pgc.state.pa.us) in the CWD Update.

Websites for all 50 state wildlife agencies can be accessed via the Game Commission’s website (www.pgc.state.pa.us). Click on the “Related Links” section at the bottom of the homepage, then select “Wildlife Agencies,” and then choose the state of interest from the map.

Additional information on CWD can be found on the CWD Alliance’s website (www.cwd-info.org).

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