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The allegations led to a multiple month investigation where there was suspicion I was also guiding without a license along with other suspected violations. As many of you know I share and enjoy taking people and kids hunting for the experience and not any gain other then friendships and memories. This resulted into a search warrant of my residence being executed three months later. You’d think they’d show some respect and professional courtesy to me on how they handled it but they did not. They took property, gear and several mounts (20+) that I’d harvested during my lifetime as far back as 20+ years ago that far exceeded the statue of limitations. Fast forward eight months, a lot spent on attorney fees and time to prove what I did and didn’t do. The state Attorney General took this case with numerous charges thrown at me backed by fabricated written lies with no evidence or facts and the state squashed the case as it should have been minus one minor violation of a technicality to deal with that wasn’t even part of the original false accusations against me. There are still a few good people in this state’s office thankfully, even here in California. A few of the many allegations they tried to charge me with was not legally taking several deer because they said I didn’t legally tag the animal, because in my photos I don’t show or have the tag visible on the racks, which to them was that I didn’t tag them right away. They tried this without even being there to view or know I tag all my animals right away then temporarily cover, hide, or remove the ugly tag for (natural) photos then secure it right back on the animal or immediately take pictures then tag it. Another one was not listing my exact kill location with an exact address or location as they said locations I listed which were within 1-2 miles of a known landmark or road (per regs requirements) was not close enough; however, their own regulations shows as a good example, 10 miles from lake berryessa is sufficient. These and many more were thrown out obviously. The Attorney General was actually very upset that they would spend so much time, money (yours), and resources to investigate me when it was started over a lie from a non credible source. The AG gave me the one minor violation to fight or except a plea to. Considering my family and the additional steep legal cost, I elected to take the one violation to learn from my minor unintentional mistake and move forward. Regarding the initial allegations there was never any evidence that I was ever on or near that guys property as it was all proved to be a %100 lie on his part. I challenged the search warrant/property confiscation and ultimately got my hunting gear back including my bows, arrows, binoculars, gear, daughters gear and mounts they took, even after a warden attempted to disobey/ignore the Attorney Generals official property release order by trying to keep several items he was not legally authorized to keep.

Regarding the violation, in August before season opened I placed a camera with attractants in front of it. Two months later in October, I returned to this location to check the camera and I was legally armed with a rifle. This location I won’t go to unarmed as I’ve encountered predators (coyotes, bears, lions) and illegals growing marijuana the year prior. I hiked in, checked the camera, and immediately left. I never had any intention of hunting as I was in and out. The AG stated since this was observed during the season and I was armed it could be looked at as if I was hunting a baited area even if it was two months later. This was the violation he offered me to fight or take and as mentioned before I elected to take it and learn from my mistake even though I never had intentions of hunting as I was armed for protection. Regarding losing my privileges for three years that is false information as per the law the maximum period for a minor violation is one year, which this is in the process of being corrected. This is the TRUTH! Many of you have hunted with me and know I’m a hard working experienced hunter who enjoys the outdoors for the right reasons. I’m not a poacher and I hunt and harvest game with persistence, knowledge and time in the field. I’ll continue to take kids and friends into the outdoors as passing it on doing it the right legal way is what I’ve always enjoyed doing and worked for. If anyone has a problem feel free to contact me directly and or unfollow me as (unlike what was stated) I don’t hunt/fish for followers and likes. Additionally, I had also recently learned directly from a warden’s mouth that this investigation was forced by his boss(es) over spite due to jealousy from my social media posts and magazine articles I had written regarding California’s downward spiraling game management related to the protection of (over populated) predator issues and game regulations. Can’t make this stuff up. As I already stated the only gain I’ve ever wanted is the friendships created and shared in the field resulting in memories and good times. During this time I have gained a ton of support from my employers, friends and family who have stayed (in contact) with me knowing the truth and my character. I will keep doing what I do for the right reasons and live my life to the fullest with a smile, which I’m continuing to do in the outdoors.

I always got a sense you guys enjoyed helping others as much as filling your own tags, the kind of guys that make places like this great.

For those who depend on hunting promotions, like in any business be prepared for some adversity and even legal issues, that is simply part of doing business. Successful business people commonly face issues and take them in stride, may have been the case here.

—Jim

Glad to hear it got resolved, but I'm sorry you had to go through all that!

Chris, hang tight. Don’t let it get you down or eat away at you. Railroading by Barney fifes has been a ongoing problem. And, always will be for guys that have to be charged with a technicality versus a real crime.

Good luck and God Bless

good on you for having the guts to post all that personal information. You didn't have to do that. I, for what it's worth, think you're a stand-up guy and missed your absence on Bowsite.

Have to say I also missed your stories and pictures. You are a slayer of turkeys for sure. Glad things are working out for you.

Regarding the CO, hate to see us start dumping on LE right now in our country. They sure need our support and I truly believe while there are those that abuse their power (personal experience documented here before), the vast majority are doing a tough job with next to no support. Sure, this LE should have told his boss to stick it, but if he is young with kids and a mortgage I can see how it would have been really tough to do the right thing.

Best wishes!

And all this while CA releases murderers, rapists, and turns a blind eye to drug dealing, prostitution and no longer prosecute property thefts?

Am I the only one that thinks this country is FUBAR?

Bottom line IMO......Facebook, Twitter and other social media platforms are not your friends. I suspect wardens also monitor hunting sites like Bowsite, Archery Talk and others fishing for wrongdoing. That is why I'm very careful about what I share with folks publicly on here and other sites. Pics and vids can be misinterpreted or taken out of context and false legal "assumptions" can be generated that are harmful. What you think is a harmless, generic hero shot or vid can be fodder for someone else with an agenda.

One got $3700 in fines

One got $750 in fines

One got $460 in fines

Insane

I guess CA must have money to burn. In a couple days surfing the web they could write hundreds of tickets for critters with a hero shot where the tag isn't visible.

That article was absurd. Those clowns for wardens were clearly on a personal quest to tarnish your names. It seems pretty obvious they dug so deep that they just couldn't stand to end the investigation without "something" to pat each others backs over.... bravo.

I really got a kick out of this statement by Moskat... “I have known many archery and rifle hunters who would be satisfied to harvest even one of this caliber of buck in a lifetime of legal hunting in California.” ...... Are ya eff'n kidding me?! Sooo guys who enjoy successes of their above average efforts beyond your definition of typical (bordering on pitiful) lifetime success, are automatically presumed to be poachers? Got it.

Best of luck moving forward guys!

It's easy to b!tch online about something but how many Cali residents here wrote letters to your representative, how many wrote letters of concern to officials, elected or otherwise? Hold those in power accountable. But it is fun to complain online, I will give ya that

After the shakedowns, one admitted to me, "We figured you must be doing something because nobody else at this end of the unit has killed anything, and here you guys are. And you have an elk and a big buck, and a cast on your right hand. How do you guys do it?" I told the guy we know how to hunt and didn't appreciate being suspected of some crap just because we were successful. They left and never came back.

Another time a contractor was driving down our road and the garage door was open, and he saw a bunch of elk racks in the rafters. He stopped and said to my wife, with a conspiratorial grin, "So your husband must poach too, eh?" She laid into the guy and he jumped back into his truck and took off.

If one is known by his enemies..... I'd guess you're in good company.....

Good to hear from you, hoping for some smother sailing in the future. Missed your stories and adventures. Was always fun. Thanks again.

At no point in any of the article did anyone present any evidence. No real facts that proved anything illegal. Just a bunch of BS gaslighting types of arguments. Thankfully most of my 15 year old students can write better.

Also just curious, despite all the wasted money, all the wasted effort and all the excessive surveillance, what was the legal outcome? How come the article fails to mention the results of all this? Why would the person writing the article exclude that information? Again high school students could write a better article...

From article "That same month, Stone, 41, pleaded no contest to one count of hunting over bait. He was fined $780 and placed on three-years probation along with a suspension of his hunting privileges during the probationary period.

Frater, the 38-year-old prison guard, pleaded no contest in January to two counts of hunting deer over bait. He was fined $5,000, placed on one year of informal probation and agreed to forfeit his hunting privileges for a year."

To the person who manages this forum, please permanently ban the person behind "DowngoesFrtr." He is posting under a profile using my name. Feel free to reach out to me directly at [email protected] if you have any questions or would like to verify my identity.

Thank you, Ryan Sabalow Sacramento Bee

Who's the liar now?

eye roll

Love the picture of you and your daughter! Keep doing what you do!!

One thing I do find odd from the OP's post. If you do not feel comfortable going to that location without a weapon, ie the gun, because of the predators and pot growers how would you feel comfortable going there to hunt with a bow and arrow when the season opened?

“‘In other words, if there are apples on the ground from a nearby tree, a hunter who otherwise legally hunts a deer within 400 yards of those apples (that’s four football fields) violates the regulation’, she said in an email. ‘That’s what happened here.’”

Wait just a damn minute....

So according to the letter of the law here... If you’re hunting a property 750 yards X 750 yards (which is 116 acres and change), and there is an apple tree in the exact center of it.... there is basically nowhere on that 116 acres where you can legally take a deer without committing a technical violation....

Unless all of the apples are still on the tree, I guess.

So if an oak is dropping acorns, do you have to run the other way?

One thing I have figured out: behind every ridiculous sounding law is an egregious violation that was dismissed on a technicality.

And that’s why game laws are written to the Strict Liability standard: so that LE actually DOESN’T bear the burden of proof.

That’s why we have legal hunting hours; that’s why some states prohibit you from shooting a deer when it’s feet are wet, and why COs are given a lot of discretion, I guess....

Damn.

§257.5. Prohibition Against Taking Resident Game Birds and Mammals by the Aid of Bait. Except as otherwise provided in these regulations or in the Fish and Game Code, resident game birds and mammals may not be taken within 400 yards of any baited area.

(a) Definition of Baited Area. As used in this regulation, "baited area" shall mean any area where shelled, shucked or unshucked corn, wheat or other grains, salt, or other feed whatsoever capable of luring, attracting, or enticing such birds or mammals is directly or indirectly placed, exposed, deposited, distributed, or scattered, and such area shall remain a baited area for ten days following complete removal.

Fish and Game continued to investigate throughout the year tracking my whereabouts using aircraft surveillance, drones, and infrared. It is appalling the amount of resources and sizable budget used in this investigation based without any credible evidence. Throughout this investigation, the wardens attempted to “catch” me trespassing on this instigator’s land, there is no evidence of trespassing as I have never stepped foot on his property.  I continued to hunt that season and killed a forked horn buck at the end of the season on a ranch far from that instigator’s property.

Two months later wardens executed a search warrant of my home resulting in them taking over $17,000 worth of hunting gear and over 15 animal mounts out of my home. During the search of my home, they took deer mounts as far back as 2010 as well as deer I’ve killed out of state which they had no probable cause to confiscate.  I had killed a spike elk earlier that year on an out of state hunt and had the skull outside to dry out. On the property list they called the skull a spike “1x1 deer skull” and took that as well. I share this to show you an example of the education level of people enforcing our game laws.

After a 4-month investigation fish and game submitted a report comprised of many assumptions and unsubstantiated accusations with numerous charges requested against me. Fortunately, and rightfully so, this desperation was recognized by the prosecuting authority. After the Attorney General was given the case, I was made aware he thought this was a total misuse of resources by fish and game and immediately dropped majority of the charges and left two minor violations on the table.

Fighting these would cost me much more in lawyer fees bringing me to the decision to accept them, as I made an unknowingly mistake. The violations that I accepted involved me hunting a ranch with permission that had a small apple orchard next to the owner’s home. The ranch owner routinely removed the piles of apples from under the trees to keep critters and bugs from infesting his nearby home and dumps them further away on his property.   I chose to hunt closer to the dumped apples along a noticeable game trail versus his orchard, so fish game stated I was hunting over bait because the owner had moved the dropped apples. I made a mistake in doing so where I would have been legal to sit/hunt near or on the orchard closer to his residence. Yes odd.  I will not make that mistake again. Seems such a small infraction to spend such a great amount of time and resources on. I was ultimately given ALL my gear and mounts back minus a few items including the forked horn I had harvested that year.

Those of you who know me, work with me, or have spent any time around me know my character and the type of person I am. I could go on and on listing the false accusations and the fabricated lies fish and game used to attempt to tarnish my reputation, but the outcome explains itself. If anyone has questions, feel free to contact me. This is the TRUTH of this story.

Besides the mistakes I had made that I owned and am sorry for, I am still baffled as to how California fish and game conducts investigations with significant overreach and disregard to the impact on individuals lives over false accusations, made of me and many others I had learned of while researching past investigations. I am grateful for my lawyer who helped me through this, an Attorney General who proved good people still exist, and all my true friends and family who showed continued support through this.

As a closing statement I offered to donate $5,000 to the wildlife conservation fund as doing my part in helping wildlife conservation in California. It was a way to help me extend my hunting as I drew a very good late season tag and wanted to be able to do the hunt. It has been said I was “fined” $5,000 which is false. Thank you everyone for the support you have no idea what it means to me.

As for the guy who used my name as downgoes, I’m kind of enlightened you went as far as using my name to create a handle and come on here and bash me. Basically shows how much you have going for you in life. I’ll pray you find happiness soon. This whole mess is out of control and the internet proves you are guilty until proven innocent. Unfortunate.

And the asshat liar posting as Downgoes shows his colors.... again, these people have no sense of shame.... self-justified in their lies. It's a sad state this world is in. Sad people.

Also The Big Guys involvement with Ukraine and China.

Or maybe why it’s ok to call the virus the UK or South African variant but not the China virus.

Perhaps the Big guy and therefore the media cut a deal to not blame China.

I’m guessing they wouldn’t even need the plane or drone to prove it. It’s shocking how the justice system works. Throwing apples on the ground gets you time in jail. But selling out your country. Meh!

I don;t know Chris and Joe personally but have followed alot of their turkey threads. Seem like real stand up guys! Really sorry to hear all the @#$% they have been thru! It's sad that we have people with nothing better to do than to go out of their way to try to ruin someone's life like this! If I was a California tax payer I would be irate that all this time and money was spent trying to convict someone of a minor game violation! : (

Hopefully this horrific experience does not curb their enthusiasm for mentoring young hunters in the future. I wish them the best and hopefully they can put all this @#$% behind them and move forward!

I'm glad to see they offered their side of the story for all to read- shows their character.

I'm a little confused by your $5000 "donation" offer. It sounds/reads like you (or your lawyer) made a deal or were trying to soften the sentence by entering a tag raffle/auction put on by a wildlife conservation fund???? One of your lawyers in the Sac Bee article stated it was a "fine". That's actually not a bad idea if the judge or AG let you do it.....kill two birds with one stone. You showed good intent towards wildlife conservation and won(??) a late season tag. At least that is how I read what you wrote. If I read it wrong....sorry about that. Please correct me.

If there was a sound case/evidence for all the charges that would have held up in court....the AG would not have dismissed most of them. The AG may have done the wardens a favor by dismissing most of the charges before they went before a court of law and the judge turns the tables on the Wardens. The quotes in the Sac Bee article makes Warden Moskat look young and inexperienced?? I don't fault the wardens for trying to do their job....they just might have been too aggressive and used bad judgement in this case to get convictions on the social media "trophy hunters". This may be a teachable moment for them too.

Is there any recourse against the property owner who claims or made official charges you were trespassing?

Did Ryan at the Sac Bee make any attempt to speak with you guys directly before publishing his article? His article doesn't seem to be balanced. Warden Moskat made quite a few allegations and speculations yet they were not refuted well in the article other than the AG dropped most of them. IMO Ryan could have done a better job in the "fair and balanced" department if he had spoken with you guys. Maybe your lawyers didn't want you to??

To the guy that falsely used Ryan's name and claimed the article as his own......not cool at all. You were lying and plagiarizing to push your agenda.

You don't have to answer any of the above....I was just making some casual observations. Good luck to you guys going forward and we can all use this as a teachable moment.

Don't know what happened, not throwing out any condemnation today for anybody. Grace to all and may you be blessed with tags this year

So is planting an apple tree “or other feed whatsoever” a case of “indirectly plac[ing], expos[ing], deposit[ing], distribut[ing], or scatter[ing]”?

So the long and short is that under strict liability, The regs appear to be written in such a way that gives the authorities some pretty extraordinary prosecutorial leeway such that they are permitted to make a case out of just about anything if they choose to do so. And maybe that’s only fair, because dedicated Poachers tend to be willing to do just about anything in order to get away with their activities, and they apparently have been pretty successful over the years at finding lawyers who can get them off on the smallest of technicalities.

“ The GW told him to place corn piles on the property line near the neighbor's tree stands and then he would enforce the baiting laws against the neighbor. Sounds like entrapment to me.”

Well.... YEAH. If you can be prosecuted for unwittingly hunting near an illegal bait pile on someone else’s property, The Experiment is over.

That’s hilarious, actually. And tragic, really, because I used to print MOA groups at 300 yards (sitting, with a bi-pod) very consistently out on the windy plains of Wyoming... Back before I decided that I didn’t really need a 7 mag.....

With a rangefinder, a decent rifle, and a half-quiet morning, that’s hardly a “long” shot for anyone without a noticeable flinch.

So the question is… Do you set up sitting on top of the bait pile and use your laser to make sure that the deer is at least 400 yards away when you shoot it, or are you required to sit 405 yards from the feeder, and then you are allowed to shoot a deer that is standing right under it?

Yeah the wardens were over zealous. And you have a crappy neighbor. But you can't claim how righteous you are when you were blatantly breaking the law with respect to using bait and attractants to feed wild game in CA.

So it had been a couple months you claim since you put out to attract animals before hunting season. Well guess what, those animals still know where they had some good eats in the past and will be cruising through there again. I don't care if you weren't "actively" baiting and area. You were creating an situation where those animals wouldn't necessarily have been there if you didn't set out the bait a couple months ago.

The way I look at it, play stupid games - win stupid prizes!

Two: "DowngoesFrtr", what sort of lying, chickenshit, cowardly piece of garbage registers with a fake name, pretending to be the Sac Bee writer instead of using his own name? You obviously have something personal against these guys to go to all the trouble. Why don't YOU come clean and identify yourself. Maybe we can poke around a bit and find something out about you too.

To the person who manages this forum, please permanently ban the person behind "DowngoesFrtr." He is posting under a profile using my name. Feel free to reach out to me directly at [email protected] if you have any questions or would like to verify my identity.

Thank you, Ryan Sabalow Sacramento Bee"

The old saying comes into play here.....It's not what ya think you know...it's what ya can prove. The guys had their day in court or at least the legal system and it's over. They and the wardens have to live with it.

Then he replied back under a new handle, "Mrinnapropriate", registered to Ryan Landerstein, and made more allegations against Chris and Joe, which I will forward to Chris in a PM in case they want to pursue it. If, in fact, Landerstein is his real name. He is a messed up individual.

One or more of those involved in this are not who they say they are. One has to wonder why they feel the need to post under fake names if they are telling the truth. Chris and Joe are known to us, and have a history, The fake reporter, who changes his name and registration, sure seems to have an ax to grind.

I've had enough of this guy. He's gone.

From the news paper article, and court documents it seems like they were mostly hunting a few really small properties(1-2 acres) surrounded by larger ones. Bait, cameras, and tree stands were found at the properties.

The cops have photos and witnessed them driving around glassing and pointing guns from the car towards deer. In one instance the cop witnessed the truck drive around the corner after seeing a gun hanging out the window, then heard a gunshot.

Multiple gut piles found by the cops on the small properties near bait piles.

This whole thing doesn't make a lot of sense. If the cops have all this evidence, why would Chris only get a $780 ticket, and Joe made a $5000.00 donation to a wildlife organization. The newspaper article really leads you to believe the officer had these guys dead to right on being a major poaching ring. Cops on the ground, others watching from airplanes, and Chris gets a $780 ticket?

Reading through the amount of resources used to target these guys and the tiny fines/ infractions they got to stick, it makes you kind of wonder who even put out the bait in the photos used to get the search warrants.

If I lived in that county I think I would be at city hall today demanding an investigation of the investigators, and asking for a refund on myt taxes paid. This sounds like a multi year investigation that cost in the hundreds of thousands of dollars that resulted in a $780 ticket.

I've never met either Chris or Joe, just read their stories on Bowsite. Still baffled on this.

If the evidence is accurate, it sounds like they did commit some baiting infractions, but it also sounds like some cops were given unlimited resources to investigate a personal vendetta.

Does a murder investigation even get this much resources allocated to it?

Fake reporter? Real reporter. First time posters with an axe to grind?

Did Guy Ritchie direct this thread?

That’s the way I see.

You’re talking about the exhaustive list of records to be seized/searched, or....???

^...X2. As far as the case itself and what I speculated to earlier....I'll lean towards the AG detected something within the state's/warden's case that would not hold up in the courts. I'd be curious what it might be if anything.

I was pleasantly surprised to see the article's author is also a hunter. I still think he could have written a more balanced article. The headline over-sold the actual results.

You obviously place some value on the “likes” or attention that comes from your social media participation or you wouldn’t do it and you wouldn’t have posted this thread, trying to mitigate the impact of this case. There’s nothing wrong with that. I was surprised that the casual entertainment of Bowsite has paid dividends of real friends.

I’m not much of a follower. No Snap-Insta-Tweet. My opinion is only that of a faceless guy on the internet. Your sponsors aren’t reaching me. They won’t miss me. I have no delusions of grandeur.

This post, like my others, is more about me assessing my own values and adherence to my own principles and reason. For myself.

I am flawed. I don’t expect to hold others to a higher standard. I am not part of the internet mob who believes in permanently “cancelling” people with no opportunity for redemption. For what it’s worth, though, I am not a fan of serious and hazardous activities that set a precedence for kids and thus encourage an illegal disregard for safety and a failure to own faults after the fact.

I recognize that no one owes me anything... even an explanation.

But... you did post this thread and opened the conversation. Were these charges in fact accurate in any way? Did you have a youth with a rifle in the bed of your truck on a road? Is that the type of hunting that you defacto endorse and encourage?

Respond or not. I recognize that my personal opinions do not entitle me to make demands. Choose for yourself. Choose if the opinions of anonymous guys on the internet matter. Choose who you want to be and how you wish to conduct yourself.

I've also seen law enforcement act terrible. They are just people as well.

As a young man, I was taught by an incredible man to be very careful judging folks by their best or worst moments. In time we will all have some of both and they likely paint a very incomplete picture of who a person is.

I’m thinkin’ we need more people like that.

And I’ve gotta agree with Shawn; we’d be better off with a total ban on baiting for herbivores.

So just one thought on the question of the resources consumed here.... On a Baiting violation, I guess I would prefer that the COs would have to have some pretty substantial evidence that the hunter in question was directly involved with or deliberately making use of any bait placed in the area. Because it would really SUCK if you were to be prosecuted when you were just out there doing your thing and you happened to wander too close to someone else’s illegal pile.

Which is not all that unlikely if you were to set up on a heavily used trail, for example...

So what happens if you shoot a deer out of season; do they call in Seal Team 6?

This just keeps getting better.

I'd be curious to know what the total bill was for this investigation? Aircraft flt hours are not cheap. A FOIA request might find out. That would be a good one for Ryan to find out and do a follow-up story.

Yeah.... guessing an FBI agent named Strzok had a heck of a stellar record too..... Who's that Comey guy again? A national hero some say. Good grief..... these guys had risen to the TOP of their field..... search warrants, probable cause and "evidence" indeed.....

LEOs used every resource they could muster on this and more. They can write up all the reports they like. Means nothing. Obtaining warrants means nothing (see: Comey above)

Unless they have hard evidence of this, (which much of it was proven false like the claims of trespass), evidence that holds up in court... then it is what it is. They pleaded to doing 75 in a 55. When in many states limit is 80..... dats da facts, SIR.

All I needed to hear on this was numb-nuts lying his azz off over and over above. Hey, just because he's a lying POS doesn't mean he's not telling the truth.... OK, yeah, kinda does.....

I am a very conservative, pro LE and Military person.

BUT! The government abuse of power is getting out of hand. I think we have all run into the Barney Fifes of the world that have a gun and a badge and like to push their authority. People have asked for generations how the people in the German SS could all perform such atrocities. How that many people could be that evil. The type of cop that abuses his authority with minorities, the sanctuary cities, the activist judges. These are the same type of personalities that can condone being in such a group as the SS It’s happened in about every society. There are sometimes defective people in authority

A thread like this seems odd. It’s like deciding to pick a scab off a wound thinking it will heal faster with less permanent scarring. It seldom works like that, and it re-opens the wound for further injury. And then comes the whole ‘self-inflicted or not’ discussion.

Forums are the most unkind juries, and likely to do a forensic dig which just makes the whole thing harder to move on from. I guess that’s what happens when you decide to open up a wound.

Objection, if it please The Court....The fact that baiting is legal elsewhere has ZERO to do with baiting violations in a state with strict prohibitions against it.

It just doesn’t.

I’ve been picking up a vibe that people here are reluctant to condemn someone for doing something that they do themselves; I get that. Especially if the accused is someone you think well of.

But Baiting is Poaching in CA.

“ dats da facts, SIR.”

Laws either matter or they don’t. When you start carving out exceptions for people you like (OR if Enforcement is willing to bend the rules to go after somebody they seem to particularly DISLIKE....). Maybe we can agree that neither is preferable to the other?

That sounds to me like that’s probably what happened. Oh wait, the facts say that’s exactly what happened.

I’m surprised that despite all of the surveillance and the lengths that the wardens went to, there appears to never have been a time that anyone was caught red-handed hunting over bait or hauling bait in to stands. That makes me wonder.

The things that concern me are the supposed un-tagged deer and the photos of road hunting involving a youth. That seems damning to me.

But... I’m not on a jury. Any disappointment that I have relates to the impact on hunting with non-hunters.

I enjoyed the hunt recaps, especially when they were hunting with Bowsiters and their kids. I never followed them on the other forms of social media. I never had a Chris and Joe poster or tattoo. I wasn’t going to be purchasing something that they promoted for sponsors.

But I had a positive opinion of them.

It’s unfortunate that that opinion may be dimming.

which is the whole point. im not saying I agree but i can guarantee you that there are a whole lot of average hunters rethinking whether or not it might be worth it to throw some bait out or use some illegal attractants. the "what will they possibly do to me" and "dont they have more important things to worry about" questions have just been answered and the answers arent something that most people want to experience.

Reading the investigative documents indicates a stunning amount of time and research put into this case. LE obviously wanted this one very much.

I'm not trying to defend them in any way...................................................just simply saying I respect them for at least having the balls to come clean here and not try to hide in the shadows, or ignore it and keep posting like nothing ever happened.

While the not reporting accurate locations of kills may not see like that big of a deal, to me it shows that they were trying to avoid having those kill sites be tied to any baited areas.

As for not having tags on the antlers in the photos, that is a stretch by the Wardens. Even though its a technical violation I guess that's what they used as probable cause to get warrants. This seems akin to pulling someone over for not using a turn signal and then searching a vehicle. Technical violation leads to potentially more violations.

They are not sorry for what they have done. They are just pissed they got caught.

Kinda funny!