A married couple from Oregon has plead guilty to illegally shooting a Bison within the boundaries of Grand Teton National Park reports The Yellowstone Insider.
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The incident was initially reported by hunters who came across the leftovers of a recently cleaned animal as well as a trail left by what appeared to be a dragged animal. After further investigation by park officials, they discovered that a bull bison had been harvested within a 1/4 mile of the national park’s boundary. The accused then drove an unpermitted vehicle across off-road terrain to retrieve the corpse. The off-road vehicle caused significant damage to the landscape in the process.
After a series of interviews amongst the hunting community, officials identified the two suspects as Gary and Laurie Washington. Gary Washington have since been fined $8,025, sentenced to three years of unsupervised probation, in addition to a world-wide hunting ban through 2017. Laurie received the same exact sentence with the exception of the $8,025 fine and was instead ordered to pay a $35 court processing fee.
Find the entire Yellowstone Insider article here: Oregon Couple Pleads Guilty to Poaching Bison in Grand Teton National Park