FINED $2,500 FOR ILLEGAL DEER HUNTING

[Some Old Guy 968]

DRYDEN - Two Vermont hunters have been fined $2,500 after pleading guilty to illegal deer hunting.

Leonard J. Rivers, 44, of Montpelier, has been fined $1,000 for careless hunting and $500 for trespassing. Earl D. MacDonald, 35, of Westburke, has been fined $500 for careless hunting and $500 for trespassing. They are banned from hunting in Ontario for two years and must take the hunter safety course before re-applying for a hunting licence. They forfeited the deer they killed to the Crown and it was donated to charity.

Court was told that on November 8, 2006, Rivers and MacDonald shot and killed a buck on private property near the School Road, in a rural area about six kilometres north of Kenora. Local residents heard shots, chased a truck with Vermont licence plates leaving the scene, and called the Ministry of Natural Resources and the Ontario Provincial Police. Police pulled over Rivers and MacDonald as they were on their way to the provincial police detachment to turn themselves in. Kenora District conservation officers interviewed them.

Justice of the Peace Marcel Donio heard the case in the Ontario Court of Justice, Dryden, on January 30, 2007.

The ministry reminds the public that safe hunting practices protect hunters as well as the public. Hunters should always obtain a landowner's permission before going on to private property to hunt.

To report a natural resource violation, call 1-877-TIPS-MNR (847-7667) toll free any time or contact your local ministry office during regular business hours. You can also call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).