Careless shooting nets hefty fine

 

mnr

A Perth resident has been fined a whopping $3,000 and had their hunting licence suspended after being convicted of several offences related to deer hunting. 

The individual was fined $600 each for five offences: trespassing to hunt, illegally discharging a firearm from a motor vehicle, carelessly discharging a firearm, possession of illegally killed wildlife, and having a loaded firearm on a roadway. 

The person was also prohibited from hunting in Ontario for three years and must complete a hunter safety course before their licence is reinstated. The meat from the deer he shot was forfeited to the Crown. 

Ministry of Natural Resources conservation officers responded to a hunting complaint on November 13, 2008, in Tay Valley Township, Lanark County, East Region. The investigation revealed that on November 12, 2008, the person in question had shot a nine-point buck from inside their car while driving along the Lally Road near Murphy’s Point Provincial Park. 

The deer died on private land and the individual trespassed on the land to retrieve the animal. Officers seized a butchered white-tailed deer that was found at the person’s residence.  DNA evidence was also used in the case. 

Justice of the Peace Barry Switzer heard the case in the Ontario Court of Justice, Perth, on July 13, 2010. 

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

14 thoughts on “Careless shooting nets hefty fine”

  1. Another one that should be banned from hunting for life. Like a driver’s licence, hunting is a privilege not a right and those that break the law should have that privilege removed for good.

  2. Another person who gets a slap on the wrist.Why was the firearm not taken permanently,his car,and anything else he might have had with him at the time.Then there should be a fine of lets say $1500.00 per offence.And 5yrs would have been more of a detterent.

  3. This article is very poorly written.

    In addition, the image, although it does contain a caption saying that it is not related to the incident in question, should not be included with this piece. A woman behind a machine gun mounted atop a Humvee is an absurd add-on, and totally unrepresentative of the reported hunting offenses.

  4. Clint, this is a press-release from the MNR, it is NOT an article…and if you find it poorly written perhaps it is because these offences do sound really bad in print.

    The image was the only one available showing a person discharging a firearm from a vehicle (believe it or not, they’re hard to find) and obviously it was meant to be tongue-in-cheek.

    I would think the fact that I removed the person’s identity from the press-release would be something you’d notice, considering every media outlet in the city reported on this yesterday and had no trouble mentioning the guy’s name.

    Outdoorsguy

  5. Darn it, It wasn’t….How’s this Clint?

    A Perth man will have to dole out cash for several hunting related offences.

    Andre Bergeron was convicted on five charges last week after he shot a nine-point buck from inside his car while driving along Lally Rd. near Murphy’s Point Provincial Park.

    Investigators from the province’s natural resources ministry responded to a complaint in November 2008 that Bergeron shot the animal then trespassed on private land to retrieve it.

    Officials seized a butchered white-tailed deer from his residence and charged him with trespassing to hunt, illegally discharging a firearm from a motor vehicle, carelessly discharging a firearm, possession of illegally killed wildlife and having a loaded firearm on a roadway.

    Bergeron is fined a total of $3,000 — $600 for each of the five offences.

    Justice of the Peace Barry Switzer also revoked Bergeron’s hunting license for three years and ordered him to take a hunter safety course before his license is reinstated.

    http://www.ottawasun.com/news/ottawa/2010/07/21/14784396.html

  6. If this would have happened in Quebec, the fines would have been in the area of $15,000.00. The only thing is in Quebec you are allowed to have a loaded firearm on a road, you just can’t shoot from the road, thats a $1800.00 fine. $5000.00 for illegall meat, plus another $5000.00 for shooting the animal, thats so that if others in the group that have the meat will also get fined, unless you turn the guilty person in. Tresspassing well thats $1000.00.

    1. Hawley, yes a loaded firearm on the road in QC, but never a loaded firearm while travelling in a motorized vehicle.

      I guess this fellow was lucky he did it in Ontario!

      Outdoorsguy

  7. these bone heads give hunters such a bad name. its unbelievable what goes through some peoples thick skulls

  8. this is awful! I don’t know why there wasn’t more of a fine.
    This is the stuff that gives us decent hunters a bad name and reputation.

    Greater fines should be in place to be a stronger deterrent.

  9. We would do ourselves a huge favour if we would not call this guy a (hunter) or what he did (hunting). What he did was poaching. Everything outside the legal parametors set out in the hunting guide should be called what it is and that is poaching. Every time the media tells a story that is our opportunity to correct them because one minute they say illegal hunting or illegal hunter and the next time we all get mixed in and it gives us and the sport a bad name. So next time we hear about poachers make sure the name sticks.(POACHER).Maybe one day the public will see a difference as well.

  10. Paul, although he did lose his hunting privileges, nowhere in that release was he referred to as a ‘hunter’. I made sure of that!

    Outdoorsguy

  11. Sorry Jeff i was not refuring to you or your story so much as i was making a comment regarding the way i saw the article in the paper. And i think if we call it what it is maybe we can convince the public to separate the rest of us from them.

  12. no worries Paul I know what you meant…and I understand the implications for the rest of us.

    Outdoorsguy

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