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Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) seeks the public’s help to identify those responsible for illegally poaching and abandoning carcasses of four large bull elk on four separate ranches in Las Animas County, near the Colorado-New Mexico state-line. The elk were illegally shot Sept. 13, 26 and 27 near the communities of Stonewall and Picketwire.
Of the four bull elk illegally poached, one was shot and abandoned whole; one was wounded and had to be put down; another was shot with the backstraps removed; the fourth had its head removed with no meat taken.
“These were senseless and disgraceful acts which demonstrates a complete disregard for Colorado wildlife,” said Jim Hawkins, CPW Assistant Chief of Law Enforcement and Operation Game Thief Coordinator.
Investigators would like to speak with anyone who may have information about these crimes. Information may be provided anonymously through Operation Game Thief at 1-877-265-6648 or by email to [email protected]. A $1,000 reward is being offered for tips that lead to a citation or an arrest. Anyone willing to testify about information they provided which led to the filing of charges would be eligible for a preference point or hunting license.
According to the CPW website: “Poaching is a serious, costly crime which harms legitimate sportspersons, wildlife viewers, small business owners and taxpayers. If convicted, a person charged with poaching violations could face heavy fines and suspension of hunting and fishing licenses.”
Opinion
While that sounds good, it seems like poachers normally just receive a slap on the wrist. What good is suspending a poacher’s hunting license when they are already hunting without a license anyway? We need extremely heavy fines and significant jail-time if we really want to slow or stop poaching.
I agree with Dave’s opinion and have expressed it many times on this forum. Courts just don’t take poaching cases seriously. Probation and fines and license suspension are the usual route. Rarely is there any significant jail time imposed (jail time is almost never imposed, even on egregious cases). I also agree that license suspensions mean nothing to poachers.
Even stiff fines, which may be imposed, are many times not actually collected. I worked in a courthouse for seven years and saw this firsthand. Unpaid fines get sent to a collections agency and in most cases are never collected. This is the part that is never disclosed. Press releases on egregious cases will publish huge fine amounts and proudly declare that justice has been served. Not so fast. In reality, if the fines are never collected, how is that actual justice?
Serious jail time is the only penalty that has a chance of changing behavior. Civil forfeiture might also help (guns, vehicles, etc) but most of the time that isn’t sought either.
We need an overhaul of the justice system to be sure. Maybe passing laws with mandatory jail sentences for serious poaching cases would be a good start.
It’s easier to just say don’t do that anymore
Massive jail time and forfeiture of EVERYTHING used in the crime. Weapons, vehicles, campers…. all of it!
Where’s the lobbyists? Who are they? Get them involved. This is likely a NM problem but that’s really a 3rd world country where the law is a matter of opinion.