Saga of a poacher: crime and punishment
By Tom Stienstra, San Francisco Chronicle
A wildlife detective saga in Northern California ended with the conviction last month of an out-of-state deer poacher — with a twist from a law that just took effect: The same poacher, caught now, would have faced fines of $80,000 instead of the $1,500 he was assessed in Superior Court.
The new law, five years in the making, says that poachers who take trophy deer, with antlers 3×3 or better, and other trophy wildlife, can face fines of $40,000 per animal, and those who illegally shoot wild turkeys up to $5,000 per bird, plus jail time.
The trail of evidence led game wardens to Nevada, on to Truckee and then ultimately to remote Mendocino County.