Tim Clemens, of Hines, pleaded guilty to one count of poisoning animals and one count of unlawful take of big game on Oct. 6, according to the Idaho Department of Fish and Game.
The charges stem from an incident in the Frank Church-River of No Return Wilderness during autumn of 2015.
Clemens killed a deer and removed the meat before placing a small amount of poison on the carcass, officials said in a news release.
The poison would eventually kill a wolf and a hunting dog. It sickened a second hunting dog.
Fish and Game spokesman Mike Keckler told the Idaho Mountain Press that officials don’t know whether Clemens was targeting a specific animal with the poisoned carcass.
“We don’t know what he was targeting,” Keckler told the newspaper.
Along with 10 days in jail and the fines, Clemens must serve 200 hours of community service and four years of probation, during which time he cannot legally hunt (Um yeah, you think he won't continue to kill animals just because you say he can't?)
Officials gave this account of the investigation:
Idaho Fish and Game launched the investigation in January 2016, when officers received a report that two dogs had been poisoned.
Interviews of the dogs’ owner and others led to a field-dressed deer carcass. After winter snows receded, Fish and Game officers were able to access the remote area to gather evidence.
Sample results from a wolf carcass near the site confirmed that it had ingested poison, and sample results from the poisoned dog matched the deer carcass. Clemens admitted to Fish and Game that he put a small amount of poison on the carcass of the deer he had killed after the meat was removed.
Valley County Prosecutor Carol Brockman filed criminal charges based on evidence from the scene, sample results, veterinary findings for the two dogs, Fish and Game’s interviews of Clemens and others.
“This was a complex investigative effort by Fish and Game officers,” Brockmann said. “Their investigation included packing into the remote area to locate the field-dressed carcass, obtaining DNA samples from the deceased animals, multiple interviews in two states and close cooperation with the prosecution effort. It was through these efforts this case was seen to a successful conclusion.”
Pursuant to a plea agreement, the court granted a withheld judgment. A withheld judgment means that, after completing his sentence and probation, Clemens may ask the court to dismiss the charges against him SO THAT THIS CRIME WILL BE REMOVED FROM HIS CRIMINAL RECORD AS THOUGH IT HAD NEVER HAPPENED.
