SULLIVAN COUNTIANS CITED FOR ILLEGAL KILL OF TUNDRA SWAN/DEER
HARRISBURG – Pennsylvania Game Commission Wildlife Conservation Officer (WCO) Rick Finnegan recently completed two cases involving the illegal killing of a tundra swan and a white-tailed deer in Sullivan County.
Jesse Richart, 21, of Forksville, Sullivan County, was cited for illegally killing a tundra swan in March of 2009 in northern Sullivan County.
“A concerned citizen called me with information that he had been watching a pair of tundra swans at a local pond, but one was now dead,” WCO Finnegan said. “I responded, expecting to do a necropsy to determine the cause of death, but it was immediately apparent that the bird was shot with a rifle.
“A few months later, when interviewing Richart about a deer that he had illegally killed – which cost him and another defendant $900 each, plus the loss of their hunting privileges for three years each – I learned he also may have been the one who shot the tundra swan.”
After collecting evidence and seizing the rifles from Richart that were suspected to have been used in these poaching cases for ballistics testing, WCO Finnegan received a full written confession from Richart on how he and another – whom he would not identify – had been out spotlighting.
“The confession detailed that when they saw the swan, Richart shot it from the vehicle,” Finnegan said. Several citations were filed in which Richart pled guilty to all charges, which will cost him $600 and he likely lose his hunting privileges for four years, in addition to the three years for the deer last year.
In another case, 25-year-old Thomas J. White Jr., also from Forksville area of Sullivan County, pled guilty to the unlawful possession of a white-tailed deer. White was observed with a dead deer in the back of his truck, which he proceeded to dump in a nearby field. Field Forensics testing proved that it had been shot twice in the head with a .17-caliber firearm.
“During an interview I conducted, along with Deputy WCO Jeff Spako, White gave several false statements, including what happened to his .17-caliber firearm, and how he obtained the deer,” Finnegan said. “White said he hit the deer with his truck, which certainly was not the case, given the condition of the deer carcass. There was nothing except for the two bullet holes in the head.
“Also, White never called the Game Commission to obtain a free permit number to lawfully possess a road-killed deer.”
White pled guilty and was ordered to pay $500 plus costs and will likely lose his hunting privileges for three years.
“It’s safe to say that there are poachers in every part of our state, and until Pennsylvania’s fines and penalties for poaching are increased, law-abiding hunters – as well as all Pennsylvanians – will continue to have to suffer the loss of game and wildlife,” said WCO Finnegan. “It’s a shame when wildlife is taken for granted and poachers get away with it. When people in the community speak up, a WCO can be more effective investigating crimes against wildlife and enforcing the law.
“Give the large district that each WCO covers, he or she can’t be everywhere. That’s why public participation is so important. The sooner we get the information, the better our chances of solving the investigation. Without that initial phone call, a lot of poaching cases would go unfounded, and these are just a few real life examples of that.”
Finnegan also noted that current fines and penalties do not always appear to be a deterrent, as evidenced from some repeat violators.
“The Game Commission is supporting legislation that would increases fines and penalties for those chronic poachers,” WCO Finnegan said.
House Bill 1859, sponsored by House Game and Fisheries Committee Chairman Edward G. Staback (D-Lackawanna), would increase fines and penalties for poaching. The bill was approved by the House on July 21, by a vote of 196-3. The bill was approved by the Senate Game and Fisheries Committee on Jan. 26, and presently awaits further consideration in the Senate Appropriations Committee.
