Man sentenced for illegal deer, elk hunting in Idaho Panhandle Region

KHQ ^ | 03/07/26 | Daniel Fortin

[Fury]

COEUR D’ALENE, Idaho — A man was sentenced Friday for multiple wildlife violations in the Idaho Panhandle Region. The charges stem from the illegal hunting of several big game animals, including deer and an elk, in 2024.

According to Idaho Fish and Game, the man received a significant sentence that includes $6,750 in restitution, along with fines and court costs. He also faces up to five years in prison, which was suspended, and will serve 60 days in county jail immediately.

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TOPICS: Crime/Corruption
KEYWORDS: crime

[Fury]

Picture of unnamed defendant in article holding deer that was taken via jacklighting.

[Sirius Lee]

Guy in Wiscasset just got busted for rolling through a stop sign coming off Hodge.

[wny]

undocumented deer..

[woodbutcher1963]

I have been a hunter on and off for 50 years.
However, I started being an active whitetail hunter again since I bought my current house in southern NH with 12 acres. There is 55 acres to the north. Twenty acres to the east. About 35 to the south and nothing across the street for about a 1/2 mile in either direction.

Now there are houses scattered in that area. We are on the edge of the country. Suburbia starts about a 1/2 south of me. There are deer everywhere around my house all the time.
There were four does about 30-40 feet in front of my house yesterday morning when I woke up.

All that being said, deer are still pretty wary of humans as soon as hunting season starts. The same deer that walk up and eat my bushes around my house in the summer run as soon as October comes around. Not so much if I am riding on my lawnmower. However, if I am walking on two feet they recognize me as a predator.

I have a deer stand at the back corner of my property abutting the neighbors with 55 acres. I have a game camera set up to find out when the deer are coming through. The bucks are VERY RARELY moving during the daylight. I shot a buck last November during the rut. He was following one of those young does. I had never seen him other than on the game camera at 8:30 pm, 11:30pm or 3am. He was never out during the daylight hours. That is how he stayed alive until he was about 4 1/2. His ONLY mistake was thinking with the little head instead of the big head.

This is WHY JACKLIGHTING is so wrong. Deer have huge eyeballs. At least 2-3X the size of ours. They developed to be able to see in low light. Early morning or just before dark. Or at night especially when the moon is large. Their eyes also can see movement much better than ours. If you move they will see you. They also see certain colors(blue) and do NOT see Orange. Which is why if you wear blaze orange you are much safer.
Deer also have ears that they can rotate to hear predators. They can hear much better than you.
Lastly, deer can smell you. Which is why prior to hunting you should not smoke, drink alcohol, eat spicy food, wash your clothes with Tide or Lestoil. In fact you should hang your clothes outside.

All these things will give you the potential opportunity to harvest a deer. They will even the playing field when you go out to hunt. Which is why you go out prior to first light get into your deer stand and DO NOT MOVE. Then you just have to hope a deer walks in front of you and pretty much stands still broadside. That way you might get the chance to shoot them and kill them with one shot. Just ONE shot(just like in the movie).

If you don’t do all of these things you are at a disadvantage.

[TheDon]

Nice of the author not to include the perps name. Must be friends.

[Alas Babylon!]

Not so much if I am riding on my lawnmower.

That is why you should carry when on that tractor!

Cut the grass and gain venison at the same time!

[woodbutcher1963]

It is really strange the way deer and turkeys are not afraid of me when I am mowing the lawn. I have about two acres of grass. I have a field to the side of my house that is about one acre. I have been out on the mower when a deer walked onto that field when I was mowing. As I came around for another circular pass the deer just stood there and looked at me. Like WHY are you coming over here? Can’t you see I am eating the grass over here? It is not like she couldn’t have heard me. That mower is pretty loud.
Then the deer trotted away about 40 feet turned around and just looked at me.

The same story with turkeys. I have driven up to within 20 feet of them when I am on the mower. Same thing they just look at me as if I am bothering them. Like, hey we were here first.

[ViLaLuz]

The deer come and nibble on my garden and lick the seeds out of the bird feeder even when I’m right there working in the yard.

[Alas Babylon!]

I’m in lower Alabama. The deer and turkeys here flee at the sound of a UTV, ATV, tractor or riding mower.

I suppose a lot more people hunt down here from these types of vehicles!

Maybe I should get a lifted electric golf cart...

[TStro]

A neighbor down the road from me feeds corn to the turkeys. I’ve had them leave their roosts across the highway over my FJ Cruiser.
Attracts lots of deer. See them often dead on the side of the road
There was a buck and five does one morning when I was driving into town, next to his house
I live in a rural area, I have several close neighbors, but drive about 100 yards and it’s farmland.
Fortunately I haven’t had any “close encounters” myself because I drive very slow when it’s dark

[crusty old prospector]

Most of the deer around me are nocturnal. It seems they are evolving. We rarely see them except on game cameras. Hogs as well.

[Sawdring]

I have never heard the term “jacklighting” before, we always called it “shining”.

[woodbutcher1963]

No, my younger brother lives in central PA. He says the deer are much more scared of humans than around here. If a deer sees him they run and don’t stop until they are miles away.

[woodbutcher1963]

Deer generally are nocturnal. Especially when there is a bright moon without cloud cover. The only reason we tend to see so many in the winter is that there is still a general 1-2 feet of snow pack here. So, they are coming up to the houses to eat bushes. I even saw them eating a hemlock tree last week.
However, yews, rhododendrons, tulips, holly are all a lot of good eating to a deer. Especially, when all the grass is covered up.

[Justa]

You see his charges? You’d think he’d done this inside of an elementary school assembly. Multiple felonies and a 40 year hunting ban? But kill one hitting it with your car it’s just an insurance matter.

I noticed tho they did not cite him for being hungry.