On March 19, the carcasses were found on the Hawn ranch, other private property and nearby federal lands. The sheriff quickly rounded up 14 hunters who were camping on Hawn’s property. They said they had been given permission to shoot the bison, but who gave them that permission is part of the investigation, Gore said.
Another sticking point is the fact that the shooters didn’t harvest the meat.
“A hunter won’t shoot it and leave it,” said Armstrong, the owner of the Silverheels. He noted that the deaths of the bison — valued at up to $2,500 each — represent the loss of several generations in the herd.
“They’re assassins, not hunters,” Agosti said. “You go out to a field and walk up and shoot it: That’s hunting? Come on. I hunt elk and deer. If I don’t consume it, I won’t shoot it. To let it rot . . . there’s no honor.”