Not enough evidence to arrest anyone in Homewood bear killing
By KRNV-TV
HOMEWOOD — California Game Wardens say they do not have enough evidence right now to charge anyone with shooting the bear found dead in Homewood last week. Game Warden Patrick Foy tells News 4 they lack any conclusive evidence that would lead them to the bear’s killer.
Michael Garton lives along the beach where the bear was found. Foy says he was considered a person of interest, but declined to answer questions by officials and has since hired an attorney. Outraged residents allege Garton has a shotgun and used it on the bear, but Foy says there is no proof of this.
Foy says dozens of people claim to have video of Garton with a shotgun, but that video has not made it to the Department of Fish and Game. Foy says, if this video exists, it needs to be brought forward and could be used as evidence.
You have to be kidding , Where were the videos all this time? why was the videos not sent in ? Something very strange here , We want answers, Mad,
According to the Safari club he’s donated heavily to their organization, must be a big hunter type, I’m sure he’s to blame for this horrible crime.
Let the Director of Calif Fish & Game know you are outraged! Charlton H. Bonham, email him at:
Director@dfg.ca.gov
If there is a horrible crime here it was when that neighborhood turned a wild animal into a pet and assured its death.
The video was posted to their Facebook page. If they don’t have it it’s because they don’t want to have it. Also, the job of the investigators is to go and get the evidence, not hope someone brings it in!
This is Bull. The film is evidence. What the hell? Ok, so where do we protest? Perhaps the wall of shame can help organize us. We need to organize and say enough is enough. There is film. He threatened in front of people. Have these persons come forward? has the DFG watched the film? Why is the Placer co sheriff’s not arresting for discharging a firearm? This is unacceptable and we want answers!
This video is on kolo tv and I have seen it on Facebook, so really it has not been brought forward? Do your job and find the video to finish this investigation!
This is so wrong at every level. Threats made guns fired wildlife dying. Where is the justice. I’m sorry but COME ON. There is a difference between a dangerous bear and a pain in the a$$ and dangerous human. I cant even imagine how guns fired in a place I used to frequant is OK. Because of the deadly actions of the shooter and the carlesness of those in “charge” there is a dead bear and a free murderer. SO NO THIS IS NOT ENDING!! Sunny is worth so much more.
Wow, Lake Tahoe used to be such a wonderful place to visit. Not so much when the Sheriff chooses to ignore discharged firearms and not investigate properly. How sad for the community that these departments are so gutless and weak, sounds like some folks need to see unemployment or learn their job descriptions. Dept of Fish and Game needs to get a backbone and do some real work.
3 things conern me more than the lack of the video in their hands. 1) the DCG has the bear and likely has the ballistics to match to the gun. 2) Garton refuses to talk (which is his right) but it obviously shows some guilt on his part.
3) they need a full on investigation/subpeona on any guns purchased (obtained or in possession of)by Garton to match the ballistics.
This XO$$ should suffer the same as the bear. This high end, big game hunting fool shoots the most majestic wildlife around then hides under his attorney in fear of repercussion. Lake front homeowner riding his boat around polluting our lake and killing our wildlife. This guy should do 20 – life just as if he killed a kid on the beach. This is insane… Take away his guns.. He’s irresponsible….
Please post the URLs of those videos. I want to see them.
I too am dismayed by the seeming lack of aggressive investigation of this crime, but I offer this reminder:
Innocence must be presumed until guilt is proven. If you’re ever falsely arrested you’ll understand the imperative of this.
John, no one turned this bear into a pet. Sunny frequented swimming in the lake, as we all do, because it was enjoyable. Because of the frequency with which he would go for swims, he was obviously noticed by people who then gave him a name. This bear did nothing wrong and no one did anything to assure his death other than the mean-spirited, cold-hearted individual who shot him.
This is an out and lie. I have personally posted the video on the DFG Facebook site TWICE!
Here is a link to the video in question. The DFG should contact the creator of the video.
http://www.kolotv.com/video/?autoStart=true&topVideoCatNo=default&clipId=7569025#.UBrCoz5t7dI.facebook
I appreciate the link to the video. Perhaps if I were 20 years younger I’d be able to make out what’s happening in the video, but I just see a far-off guy and a kid doing something on a porch.
The description and images of the trail of blood leading from the forest to the place where the bear died are disturbing. What a lousy way to die. Using shot on a bear is cruel.
HI KnowBears: If you enlarge the vid – you can see a clearer image. You can also hear the sound of the shotgun being loaded. Lastly, the person who took the video clearly stated it was Mr. Garton and that he was, in fact, loading a shotgun and looking at a small bear in a nearby tree. Not only was this bear using shot, it was shot *in the back* proving it was in no way a threat. The blood trail leads clearly from this mans home. It is unbelievable that, given the video, eyewitness accounts and bloodtrail that this person is not being investigated further. It is well known he is a large contributor to local hunting organizations and one would hate to think his financial standing in the community would preclude him from being prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law!
IT APPEARS I HAVE BEEN BANNED from posting on the DFG (Department of Fish and Game) Wall and my links to the eyewitness vid under posters comments have been removed! Why do they refuse to watch the video or question the eyewitness?? Is it due to deep pockets and Mr. Garton’s financial support of hunting organizations in the area?
Okay so there is a video of a guy with a gun and maybe loading the gun, maybe not. But cycling the gun for sure. There is a bear in a tree on his property. Then hours later, no video, no witnesses,there is a shot and a dead bear. There is no way to link anything in that video to that bear. Or the guy with the gun to shooting the bear. The video is a waste of time.
There is however a direct link between a bear being habituated to humans and the bear getting dead. In fact it happens every single time.
I think people like this deranged shooter and his fellow ever fearful of everything NRA adherents get a little tingle in their naughty parts when they fondle their guns and kill things. And don’t even think of trying to pry their war/assault weapons from their cold, dead brains.
Good Dick. Keep making insulting generalities in reference to a specific crime. Does a lot of good, makes you look real smart too.
@John: The video shows clear intent. The bear was in a tree, not threatening in any way. This person had made repeated comments to people that he was going to shoot this bear and had been often seen firing off his shotgun into the woods surrounding his property. My point is, the DFG neither acknowledged that such a video even existed, did not take the time to even look at it and did not contact the creator of the video, the eyewitness to Mr. Garton’s rantings. It seems quite convenient that this man left food out in a cooler on his deck for 4 days (possibly to bait Sunny), a blood trail was found from close to his property to where Sunny was found and Sunny was shot in the BACK – clearly showing that the person who shot it was in no way threatened by the bear. The fact that he also left the area immediately and hired an attorney speaks volumes.
Biting, the video shows a guy with a gun hours before anything happened and he did not shoot the bear. I know a lot of wardens, there is not a single chance they havent seen the video, its just that the video doesnt show anything but a live bear and a guy clearly not shooting it. I dont know about the bait, I didnt see it.
Biting, I grew up in a rural area and I think its really strange the way people here make pets of any form of wildlife. That bear got killed when that community decided to name it and make it at home. This isnt Disney Land. Farm kids learn not to name the livestock and we viewed wildlife as just another form of livestock. Next time if you really want to keep a bear alive, make it uncomfortable in the community. I can tell you now, if a bear comes into my house its dead. I have them in the yard all the time and thats fine, but once it breaks the plane of my door, its history.
John: Game Warden Foy clearly states in the article that they have not received any such video to date. This is incorrect. I have posted many links of this to the DFG website and they have removed same. The point I am trying to make is simply this individual repeatedly threatened to shoot this bear and had repeatedly been seen shooting in to the woods (illegally). Shortly after this video, the bear was shot, in the back, with a blood trail leading from close to his property. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out what happened. Top that off with the fact that he left immediately and refuses to speak with either media or law enforcement speaks volumes. You simply cannot ignore the obvious for arguments sake.
PS: There was absolutely no damage to this persons property that would indicate a bear trying to enter – they only thing found was a cooler of food that had been left on the porch. As a person with a property in this area, it seems highly unlikely this was left on the porch as an “accident” – especially when threats of killing this bear were made on numerous occasions. All the DFG has to do is acknowledge the video and actually interview the eyewitness as to exactly what he saw and heard. This has not been done. It reeks of shoddy investigative technique and possibly favoritism due to this persons large financial contributions.
This is a man that is a coward to come forward, His days are numbered,Instead of all the statements ,its time to call the Bear league and complain,Better yet get a hold of Sandoval and voice your opinion ,remember he is the one that said Bear hunting is allowed, See what they have to say about this one, Time to walk the streets with post stating ,stop the killing ,dont you agree? Or should we just wait for another killing ? Its up to us if we really care about the bears,There can be a win ,win situation in all this ,If we all pull together .
Biting, I only commented because a lot of stuff doesnt add up. If the guy is shooting within 500 feet of a road or house then that is definitely illegal. Nobody ever bothered to call the cops? I am pure gun toting redneck, if someone was shooting around my community we would have problems. And I would not be subtle about it. Folks are saying he is Safari Club so he wants to kill. Well believe it or not, us hunters dont relish the kill, it is about the hunt. With the caveot that I want to put 200 pounds of meat in the freezer each year. Trophy hunters want a trophy. Well that bear is no trophy and he didnt take the meat, then why bait it? So where is this guys motivation? Is he just a jerk?
Why would DFG want to interview someone you are calling a witness but who did not see the bear getting shot. That is by definition not a witness, its a person with an opinion, and probably an axe to gring.
Biting, another thing here. I have been checked by Foy, he is old school law and order. I have my stuff together so I never got a ticket from the man, but he is very very thorough.
There is a lot of uncertainty here. The resources at DFG are already stretched thin. As important as this issue is to our local community right now, DFG has much larger problems to deal with. Such as illegal commercial poachers. It is unfortunate that we might not get to the bottom of this, if someone did shoot that bear without a good reason they deserve punishment. But the reality is that human life is more valuable to entities like the state, and the state doesn’t fund enough officers to deal with these types of cases thoroughly. And the officers they do fund to protect wildlife, are more effective going after repeat offenders who kill wildlife illegally for profit. It is a sad reality that is understandably hard to accept for some of the people who are justifiably outraged by this incident.
It is good to hear about a firsthand encounter with the officer in the story from a local.
John, this is a really random question and you don’t have to answer it if is too revealing.
But have you ever fired a slingshot at a Pinus lambertiana, with the goal of identifying rust resistant individuals?
@John: Although I don’t necessarily agree with it, I am in no way denegrating hunters (except trophy hunters). My point regarding this video is to show this persons mindset. The eyewitness who shot this video, among many other people in the area, has heard him rant first hand as to wanting to kill this bear. Whether or not he fired this in a residential area is only one point. The other points are: it is not hunting season and this bear was shot in the back and therefore not a threat. Many eyewitnesses have also seen him shooting into the woods near his property. As you mentioned, this video was taken hours before the bear was shot. Well, it’s convenient that putting this together with his constant threats, occasional discharge of firearms, the fact that a blood trail led from close to his property to the corpse, his immediate vacating of the property, refusal to co-operate with authorities and hiring of an attorney goes a looong way to suggest he is the perpetrator. Personally, if it was me and I was accused of such a heinous and illegal act, I’d be damned sure to co-operate with authorities to the fullest extent to clear my name. My issue with Game Warden Foy was his statement in an article on laketahoenews was that he claimed to never have seen such a video. That was incorrect as I had repeatedly posted it to the DFG FB site and it was repeatedly removed and I was subsequently banned from posting without notice or reason. It was finally acknowledged to have been received today after 4 days of posting it repeatedly. As you stated, he is a Sierra Club member who has made many sizable donations and many feel that all of the above combined makes it *seem* that there may be favoritism or an unwillingness to prosecute in this instance. All we are asking for is more transparency in the investigation and not to let it “slide”due to this individuals financial standing in the community.
When the bear “Sonny” was nurtured by Ann Bryant of the Tahoe bear league,and the bear was comfortable with the family dog and released into the Tahoe community,it was dead! Just ask Ann Bryant about feeding bears,”A fed bear is a dead bear”.Responsible people that are going to care for a wild animal and release them need to make sure when the animals are fed and cared for they don’t associate free meals with humans.When a wild animal is cared for and released it should still be a wild animal!
Has anyone considered filing for a citizens arrest based on the discharging a weapon. It seems from these posting that there are enough first hand reports of this activity. This really should be tossed on PCSO desk. Don’t let up on the pressure to DFG. Keep his memory alive and “living” until justice is done.
I have a real dispute with the Tahoe Bear League in Homewood Ca, as to
how they handle and rehabilitate bears.Ann Bryant is the most outspoken
of the group and has stated she “found the bear Sunny in a ditch
malnourished and cared for him until he was healthy and released him.I
love bears but they should not be handled by the unqualified. There are
pictures and proof she made Sunny the bear comfortable with humans and
there is even photos of Sunny with the family dog on the Tahoe Bear
League’s Facebook page.While I was looking around the web for a better
qualified group to handle bears I discovered the Lake Tahoe Wildlife
care facility in Southlake Tahoe,while reading about them I discovered
they are the only LICENSED bear care facility in California.
Here’s my question.How do you get people that are unqualified to
rehabilitate bears to stop.
On a side note I challenged the Bear League to gather data on how many
of the bears they are “rehabilitating” get shot as opposed to bears that
are allowed to remain wild.