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Officials Seize Weapons From Man Who Shot Bear
KOMO TV (Seattle) ^ | 5/26/06 | Kevin Reece

Posted on 05/26/2006 9:59:38 AM PDT by llevrok

ISSAQUAH - The Issaquah man who claims he shot a black bear in self-defense near his home Monday night is now under investigation by the Department of Fish and Wildlife for being a felon in possession of a firearm and for hunting a bear out of season.

King County Sheriff's deputies, officers with the Department of Fish and Wildlife, and agents with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms served a search warrant Wednesday at Aaron Enright's home in the rural High Point neighborhood near Issaquah.

They seized the 10-gauge shotgun he used to shoot the bear, a .22-caliber rifle and .22-caliber ammunition. The search warrant indicates they are seeking evidence that would support a charge of "Unlawful Possession of a Firearm in the First Degree" and "Unlawful Hunt Big Game 2nd Degree: Closed Bear Season."

"It's complete insanity," Enright told us Thursday night.

Enright says that on Monday he thought his black labrador retriever was at his back door so he opened the door to let it in. Instead he stood face to face with a black bear.

He says he backed away from the door and reached for his shotgun, that the bear backed up about 10 feet from the door, then made a move as if it was going to charge at him.

"I'm tracking it and then it turns and I shoot it," said Enright, showing us where he says he stood in his own kitchen when he fired the single shot through the open door. "It turned left and took one step and I shot it."

After the encounter Enright called for help and a Department of Fish and Wildlife biologist tracked the bear to a tree about 100 yards into the woods. That wildlife biologist shot the bear a second time and killed it.

Fish and Wildlife Officer Dan Christensen now officially questions whether Enright was in imminent danger when he shot the bear. He is the officer who sought the search warrant and pursuit of charges against Enright. KOMO 4 News was not able to reach Christensen for comment Thursday night.

Enright was convicted of felony burglary 24 years ago when he was 17 years old. That is the basis for the "unlawful possession of a firearm" accusation.

Enright's record shows that in 1983 he received a three-year deferred sentence. He claims he has since passed background checks to own the shotgun and the rifle that were seized by investigators on Wednesday.

Enright has not at this point been charged with any crime. That will be up to prosecutors to decide.


TOPICS: Constitution/Conservatism; Culture/Society; US: Washington
KEYWORDS: atf; bang; banglist; bearhunt; donutwatch; felon; gungrabbers; jackbootedthugs; jbt; leo; leosgonewild; rangerrick; secondamendment; sss
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To: llevrok
I should be open season on Fish and Wildlife 365/year. 10+ years ago, they striped the ivory from all the keys of an antique piano which had been shipped from France (yuck) to the USA. I saw the pics of this piano and it was gorgeous before these government trash got their hands on it. The elephant had been dead over 75 years. What was the purpose of destroying the property of a US citizen.
41 posted on 05/26/2006 10:54:20 AM PDT by Wurlitzer (The difference between democrats and terrorists is the terrorists don't claim to support the troops)
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To: HairOfTheDog

Fisheries science suffers from the same problem. As we know.


42 posted on 05/26/2006 10:55:35 AM PDT by Ramius (Buy blades for war fighters: freeper.the-hobbit-hole.net --> 1100 knives and counting!)
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To: nina0113

Logically then, noone should have been able to find out about it ...

I believe charging as an adult allows you to go to prison for 20 years, otherwise you have to be released at 21.


43 posted on 05/26/2006 10:55:48 AM PDT by RS ("I took the drugs because I liked them and I found excuses to take them, so I'm not weaseling.")
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To: jmq
In my book you always have the right to defend yourself and family, Period!

Well said!

44 posted on 05/26/2006 10:56:42 AM PDT by beltfed308 (Cloth or link. Happiness is a perfect trunnion.)
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To: llevrok

Seattle? Figures.

My aunt lives in AK and has a large bear (I don't know my bears) stuffed, full-height in her front foyer. She shot it protecting herself and her kids on a wild Blueberry picking expedition.

Very unjust. Hope this guy fights it without taking himself to the Poor House to do so.


45 posted on 05/26/2006 10:57:18 AM PDT by Diana in Wisconsin (Save The Earth. It's The Only Planet With Chocolate.)
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To: llevrok

I wouldn't use a shotgun on bear unless it was heavy buckshot or slugs.

Individual pellets have about the same energy whether from a .410, 20 ga, 12 ga or 10 ga. It's the number of pellets carried to the target that is different.

You'd have to be very, very lucky to kill a bear with any kind of birdshot. The bear may have even recovered.

That being said, I don't know if he used birdshot or not. Buckshot and slugs aren't common for 10 gauges, though.


46 posted on 05/26/2006 10:58:27 AM PDT by Diggler
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To: Just another Joe
"Morally, he had to notify someone so that the animal didn't go berserk on the next homo sapien he came across. "

As Archie Bunker once told meathead -homosapien is a killer fag.

47 posted on 05/26/2006 10:58:52 AM PDT by Wurlitzer (The difference between democrats and terrorists is the terrorists don't claim to support the troops)
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To: freepatriot32

That would be a rational thought, and is certainly what those of us over 40 grew up being taught.

But current reality is frighteningly different!

Our Gov. Org. has drones working constantly to "update" their records on EVERY citizen.

In the several years I have been a licensed gun dealer I have seem MANY examples of those records being inaccurate in the extreme.

I have seen several examples of youthful stupidity coming back to haunt customers, even if the charges were dismissed, reduced, probation satisfied, records "expunged", etc.

I have seen MANY instances of the NICS system having the ancient arrest on file, but no record at all of the final disposition of the case.

Here is just one example!
Shortly after the "Brady Check" program began an old man came to buy a gun for protection, his area of Reno not being quite so a nice a place to live as it used to be.
He submitted to the required "Brady" infringement on his rights, and the answer came back that he was "Denied", so could not purchase the gun.
He was puzzled, stating that he had NEVER been in trouble with the law, that he had only even spoken to a cop ONE TIME in his entire life!
The one time was two days after he left two tours of duty in the Navy, being discharged in 1947.
He was not only W.W. II vet, he stayed in for the clean up after the war.

Finally having dry land underfoot he decided to celebrate by taking a drive down-town on a Saturday night.
He got into a drag race with another driver, and was pulled over on Fourth Street.
In 1947 Fourth street was close to the edge of town, and there was virtually no traffic.
The other driver mouthed off to the cop, so the cop took both of them to jail.
On Monday they appeared in court, the cop told the judge that the Navy man had been civil, and the judge dismissed the charges (note that the man spent time in jail without being convicted, for a minor infraction).

Fast forward to 2002, and that 1947 traffic stop did indeed turn out to be the "reason" for his purchase being rejected!
Since NICS did not have a record of the charge being dismissed they "assumed" that there must be an arrest warrant out for my customer!

This raises several interesting questions.
Why is our Gov. Org. even wasting money tracking trivial incidents for over fifty years?
Whatever happened to the "statute of limitations"?
Fourth amendment? Fifth? Second?

The good news is that this particular buyer still lives in the same house he was born in, and still had his receipt from the court!
He had to take it into the Highway Patrol headquarters and prove the charges were dropped, THEN he was "allowed" to exercise his right to own a firearm.

So all citizens are being tracked from cradle to grave, and ANY excuse will do to deprive us of our RKBA.


48 posted on 05/26/2006 11:03:03 AM PDT by Richard-SIA ("The natural progress of things is for government to gain ground and for liberty to yield" JEFFERSON)
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To: calex59

The man is a felon.....he has guns--illegally......he shot a bear that 'says' was going to 'charge him'. Black bears won't do that I'm told.....he probably wanted the rug so he shot it and dragged it to its' porch. I don't trust or believe felons. You can...


49 posted on 05/26/2006 11:04:25 AM PDT by Fawn ('HOUSE' RULES is over till next season :()
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To: Wurlitzer
I should be open season on Fish and Wildlife 365/year. 10+ years ago, they striped the ivory from all the keys of an antique piano which had been shipped from France (yuck) to the USA. I saw the pics of this piano and it was gorgeous before these government trash got their hands on it. The elephant had been dead over 75 years. What was the purpose of destroying the property of a US citizen.

Pursuant to CITES, it is unlawful to conclude transactions involving endangered species. It's not the date of the taking of the elephant that matters under the law, it's the date of the transaction for the piano.

50 posted on 05/26/2006 11:04:42 AM PDT by Carry_Okie (There are people in power who are REALLY stupid.)
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To: Fawn

You sound like a complete toolbox.

The man is, what, 40 years old and you're talking about something from when he was 17?


51 posted on 05/26/2006 11:09:18 AM PDT by Skywalk (Transdimensional Jihad!)
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To: nina0113

Where I live, age 14 to 17 can be judged either as an adult or as a juvenile at the discretion of the prosecutor. If the prosecutor charged/convicted him as an adult, then this felony would NOT go away after he turned 18 and he would therefore be legally barred from owing/posessing a firearm. If he was charged as a juvenile, then his felony would "go away" at age 18.


52 posted on 05/26/2006 11:12:19 AM PDT by colt1911
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To: Fawn

The way they are making everything a felony nowadays I suggest you remember your comments.


53 posted on 05/26/2006 11:12:24 AM PDT by beltfed308 (Cloth or link. Happiness is a perfect trunnion.)
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To: beltfed308

They have UNLIMITED time and budget to do ANYTHING that will create publicity justifying their existence!

These are the people who entrapped Randy Weaver in an effort to turn him into a snitch for their effort to make a case against "white separatist".
You know how that turned out!

These are the people who burned a church full of children, after inviting the MSM to watch them serve a warrant they did not actually have with them.

These are the people who killed so many old men in their beds that congress felt compelled to pass MV-86 (FOPA-86).

These people are the end result of crafting alleged "law" for the purpose of circumventing the Second Amendment prohibition on infringing our RKBA.

Enjoy your chains, most of our younger people are not even aware of what they have lost, and will do NOTHING to regain their freedom.


54 posted on 05/26/2006 11:14:00 AM PDT by Richard-SIA ("The natural progress of things is for government to gain ground and for liberty to yield" JEFFERSON)
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To: Fawn
Fawn, If he shot the bear from anywhere in or near his house, as was reported, he wasn't "hunting". If he was "hunting" on purpose, he'd have had a lot more gun, unless he's a fool.

And while black bears are not typically primary predators, that doesn't mean they aren't dangerous if they are on your porch.

If you had one on your porch, I'm sure you'd be the first to call someone with a gun to help you. Hope you trust the glass on your windows. They'll be there.... sooon.

55 posted on 05/26/2006 11:14:07 AM PDT by HairOfTheDog
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To: Carry_Okie
"Pursuant to CITES, it is unlawful to conclude transactions involving endangered species. It's not the date of the taking of the elephant that matters under the law, it's the date of the transaction for the piano."

This just shows the extent of government abuse and logic be damned. A 75+ year old antique is of danger to no animal except government trash job security. Had they held the piano until it could be proved that the ivory was or was not new then that would make sense. Maybe if the ivorys had been from crimmigrant teeth it could have been given amnesty.

56 posted on 05/26/2006 11:14:13 AM PDT by Wurlitzer (The difference between democrats and terrorists is the terrorists don't claim to support the troops)
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To: Salamander
After the encounter Enright called for help and a Department of Fish and Wildlife biologist tracked the bear to a tree about 100 yards into the woods. That wildlife biologist shot the bear a second time and killed it. Fish and Wildlife Officer Dan Christensen now officially questions whether Enright was in imminent danger when he shot the bear.

So, will we see a charge of "Unlawful Hunt Big Game 2nd Degree: Closed Bear Season." filed against the Department of Fish and Wildlife biologist? Or is there a 'biologist' exception to the hunting laws? The biologist clearly tracked and then shot the animal. Evidently the animal was not threatening the biologist's life or property. There's no evidence that the biologist was in imminent danger when he shot the bear. Sounds like hunting to me...

57 posted on 05/26/2006 11:16:09 AM PDT by The Electrician ("Government is the only enterprise in the world which expands in size when its failures increase.")
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To: RS

Since all he got was a three-year deferred (is that the same as suspended?) sentence, it sounds like he & his buddies stole a case of beer from the 7-11, or the equivalent.


58 posted on 05/26/2006 11:21:37 AM PDT by nina0113
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To: Richard-SIA
Enjoy your chains,

Whoa pardner.... I'm on your side. My tagline is the "bolt cutters" :>)

59 posted on 05/26/2006 11:23:15 AM PDT by beltfed308 (Cloth or link. Happiness is a perfect trunnion.)
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To: nina0113
Deferred usually means he gets a grace period to prove law abiding behavior, if he succeeds, it's as if the conviction never took place, if he re-offends, he faces the original charge. While they can place any kind of limitation on future behavior they want to get the convictee to agree to, he may or may not really be a felon if he passed a deferment.
60 posted on 05/26/2006 11:25:07 AM PDT by HairOfTheDog
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