Latest news with #RugerM77Mark2
Yahoo
28-02-2025
- Yahoo
91-year-old North Carolina man fined $9,500 for killing bald eagle: DOJ
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS) – A North Carolina man was ordered to pay a $9,500 fine for allegedly killing a bald eagle, the U.S. Attorney's Office announced Thursday. A Charlotte-based federal judge ordered 91-year-old Robert Garner Gambill, of Sparta, to pay a $9,500 fine and turn in his firearm in violation of the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act. Ajax, the 11-year-old bald eagle living at Grandfather Mountain, dies The court further ordered that a portion of the fine be paid to two witnesses in the case who provided information that led to Gambill's conviction, as required by the act. According to information contained in plea documents and presented at the sentencing hearing, on June 5, 2024, Gambill set his firearm on a fencepost, and aimed, shot, and killed a bald eagle that was perched in a tree near the Farmers Fish Camp Road Bridge in Sparta. Gambill used a Ruger M77 Mark 2 22-250 rifle with an attached Nikon Monarch MR31 4×16-42 scope. After reportedly killing the national symbol, documents indicate Gambill left the scene in his vehicle, abandoning the carcass on the bank of the New River. The carcass was recovered with the assistance of two individuals who witnessed the incident and was subsequently taken into the custody of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. On Oct. 11, 2024, Gambill pleaded guilty to the unlawful taking of a bald eagle. Charlotte business executives sentenced for failing to pay $150K in trust fund taxes In 1940 Congress enacted the Eagle Protection Act, predecessor to today's Bald Eagle and Golden Eagle Protection Act, to protect the bald eagle from extinction. Assistant U.S. Attorney Katherine Armstrong of the U.S. Attorney's Office in Charlotte prosecuted the case. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
28-02-2025
- Yahoo
91-year-old man fined for shooting, killing bald eagle
A federal judge ordered Robert Garner Gambill, 91, of Sparta, N.C., to pay a $9,500 fine and turn in his rifle for killing a bald eagle. American bald eagles are having a moment, ecologically and culturally On June 5, 2024, 'Gambill set his firearm on a fencepost, and aimed, shot, and killed a bald eagle that was perched in a tree near the Farmers Fish Camp Road Bridge in Sparta,' according to the courts. Gambill killed the federally protected bird with a Ruger M77 Mark 2 22-250 rifle. It had a scope attached, as well. After killing the bald eagle, Gambill left the scene in his vehicle, abandoning the eagle carcass on the bank of the New River, the courts said. The carcass was recovered with the assistance of two witnesses and was taken into the custody of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. A necropsy performed by a USFWS forensic laboratory identified its injuries were consistent with a gunshot wound from a high-powered rifle. On Oct. 11, 2024, Gambill pleaded guilty to the unlawful taking of a bald eagle. 'It's a crime against the United States to hunt, take, capture, kill, possess, and to otherwise deal with the bald or golden eagle, or any part, nest or egg thereof, except as authorized by a valid permit issued by the U.S. Secretary of Interior,' officials said. A portion of the fine must be paid to two witnesses who provided information that led to Gambill's conviction. VIDEO: Bald eagle flies commercial at Charlotte Douglas
