Poachers Feel Sting from Boone and Crockett Scoring

Poachers Feel Sting from Boone and Crockett Scoring
MISSOULA, Mont.-Courts in a growing number of states are using the Boone
and Crockett scoring system to slap poachers with more felony charges,
stiffer fines and longer revocations of hunting privileges.

Game animals with large antlers and horns aren't just trophies, but
valuable conservation resources that warrant harsher penalties for abuse,
say Boone and Crockett Club officials.

"I can't think of a better use for Boone and Crockett's scoring
system than assessing trophy-class fines for poaching trophy-class animals.
All wildlife violations are setbacks for conservation, of course, but
we're especially pleased to see stiffer penalties for illegally taking an
animal that is larger, has lived longer, is worth more as a benchmark of
good management-and would have been a rare and cherished prize for a
legal, ethical, license-buying hunter," said Lowell E. Baier, president
of the Club.

Idaho, Montana, Ohio, Pennsylvania and other states now use all or parts
of the Boone and Crockett scoring system for wildlife law enforcement.

Ohio, for example, is in the second year of a new penalty structure that
is "based on the Boone and Crockett Club scoring system to calculate
restitution values of illegally taken or possessed deer," said Ken Fitz,
law enforcement program administrator for the Ohio Department of Natural
Resources.

The penalty structure includes a formula that is somewhat complex, but for
illegally killed deer with a Boone and Crockett gross score of 125 or
greater (without drying time), the result is an exponential increase in
restitution charges. In fact, the new regulation increased Ohio's penalty
for poaching a 200-class whitetail buck from $400 to $17,000!

"Last year we had two deer with restitution values ordered in the area
of $13,000," said Fitz. "From a deterrent point of view, the law is
still too new to evaluate, but I believe it's having an effect. Under the
old law, some people thought $400 in restitution was a gamble worth taking
for a trophy buck. Under the new law, the stakes are much higher and not
worth it for most folks."

He added that the new law seems very popular with both the hunting and
non-hunting public in Ohio.

In Idaho, the Boone and Crockett scoring system helped up the ante after
Idaho poacher Frederick R. Schoenick of St. Maries killed a trophy mule
deer prior to the season opener. Schoenick took only the head and cape,
leaving the meat to waste. A game warden collected a DNA sample from the
headless carcass. Later, when Schoenick entered the antlers into a local
big buck contest, wardens used DNA to positively match the antlers to the
carcass.

Because Schoenick's illegal buck scored over 150 Boone and Crockett
points (actual score was 214-3/8), it was considered a trophy animal by
Idaho statute and therefore subject to a more severe civil penalty-a
$2,000 fine instead of the normal $400.

Jon Heggen, enforcement bureau chief with the Idaho Fish and Game
Department, explained, "In 1998, a group of concerned sportsmen believed
that stiffer penalties would create a bigger deterrent to poaching. Their
work transformed into Senate Bill 1499 which passed into law that same
year. One aspect of this new legislation was increasing civil penalties on
trophy big game animals."

Idaho law actually cites Boone and Crockett standards as the official
definition of "trophy" for several species, and states that the highest
of the typical or non-typical scores shall be used to assess penalties.

"The 1998 law also established a felony violation when accumulated civil
penalties surpass $1,000 within a 12-month period, so trophy status soon
became a mechanism that helped elevate certain fish and game violations
from misdemeanors to felonies," said Heggen.

This felony clause, in turn, increased the ability of Idaho courts to
revoke a poacher's hunting privileges for more than three years and up to
a lifetime.

Schoenick pleaded guilty to taking a trophy mule deer during closed season
as well as wasteful destruction. He received a $3,158 fine, 5 days in jail
or 120 hours of community service, 2-year probation and 2-year loss of
hunting privileges.

The Boone and Crockett scoring system originated early in the 20th Century
as a means of recording details on big game species that were thought to be
disappearing. Conservation efforts led and funded by hunters took those
species from vanishing to flourishing. Today the Club's records book
remains a valuable tool for measuring the success of ongoing management
programs.

Baier said, "Healthy fish and wildlife represents an investment by state
conservation agencies on behalf of all citizens. The Boone and Crockett
Club has always stood behind law enforcement professionals and programs,
and today we're especially proud that our trophy concept is adding more
teeth to the laws that help protect public fish and wildlife."

About the Boone and Crockett Club
Founded by Theodore Roosevelt in 1887, the Boone and Crockett Club
promotes guardianship and visionary management of big game and associated
wildlife in North America. The Club maintains the highest standards of
fair-chase sportsmanship and habitat stewardship. Member accomplishments
include protecting Yellowstone and establishing Glacier and Denali national
parks, founding the National Forest Service, National Park Service and
National Wildlife Refuge System, fostering the Pittman-Robertson and Lacey
Acts, creating the Federal Duck Stamp program, and developing the
cornerstones of modern game laws. The Boone and Crockett Club is
headquartered in Missoula, Mont. For details, visit