Latest news with #VirginiaConservationPolice
USA Today
5 days ago
- General
- USA Today
Man kills 20-plus bald eagles, hawks; public is livid over penalty
Man kills 20-plus bald eagles, hawks; public is livid over penalty A Virginia man pleaded guilty to killing in excess of 20 juvenile and mature bald eagles, and hawks in an effort to protect the waterfowl on his property so he could hunt them. The defendant was found in possession of a pole trap he used to attract the birds of prey to land and then he snared them, according to the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources. The man, who built a small waterfowl impoundment on his property, also used a banned pesticide, carbofuran, to poison the eagles and hawks. The defendant was sentenced to one day in jail, two years probation, and nearly $10,000 in fines. 'We're fairly familiar with the guy. We'd dealt with him before on some waterfowl violations,' Virginia Conservation Police Master Officer Brian Bratton said. 'He showed us what was going on and told us what he was doing and why he was doing it. He was killing the hawks and eagles because they were killing all the ducks he was attracting to his impoundment. 'It was the time of year when hawks are migrating through. And in very late winter, the food supply really gets short, so these birds are looking for prey. He was very aware it was illegal, but in his mind, the ends justified the means, because he's getting rid of the predatory birds to protect the ducks. That many hawks and eagles is pretty significant, so I feel like it's a win for protecting the resource from further loss.' Commenters on the VDWR Facebook page vehemently disagreed about it being a win. Many were livid over the man's punishment, and were angry that the VDWR withheld his identity; he was identified as William Custis Smith by court records, according to The Charlotte Observer. Among the comments: 'He got ONE DAY IN JAIL?!!!! One day?!!! One Day?!!!! So it's open season on bald eagles in Virginia now apparently.' 'The sentence should have been much longer, and the fines should have been much higher.' 'Someone certainly dropped the ball here, either the U.S. Attorney, or the judge.' 'Where's the justice for those birds?' Also on FTW Outdoors: Texas fisherman catches record bass, releases it 3 months later 'This truly is a travesty.' 'They probably spent more than $10k in labor in the investigation.' 'Something seems fishy here. No named defendants, a `well known' hunter with numerous violations and only one day with some fines.' The U.S. Attorney prosecuted the case, and the suspect pleaded guilty to violating the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act. Violation of the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act can result in a fine of $100,000, imprisonment for one year, or both, for a first offense. Penalties increase substantially for additional offenses, and a second violation of this Act is a felony. The criminal penalties are for persons who 'take, possess, offer to sell, purchase or barter, transport, export or import, at any time or any manner, any bald eagle…[or golden eagle] alive or dead, or any part (including feathers), nest or egg thereof.' Take is defined as 'pursue, shoot, shoot at, poison, wound, kill, capture, molest or disturb.' The investigation, which included the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, began during the 2023-24 waterfowl season when a tip was received about an individual trapping and poisoning hawks and eagles on the Eastern Shore of Virginia. While talking with Bratton, Smith admitted to killing in excess of 20 juvenile and mature bald eagles, and hawks, primarily red-shouldered and red-tailed. He also surrendered a can of carbofuran, the pesticide he used to commit some of the crimes, using it in a pile of fish heads. Bratton located traps and multiple eagle and hawk carcasses to confirm the original information. The investigation concluded on March 31, and the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources announced the results last week.
New York Post
6 days ago
- General
- New York Post
Virginia hunter gets single day in prison for killing 20 juvenile bald eagles and hawks in poisoning scheme: authorities
A Virginia hunter got a slap on the wrist for poisoning over 20 young hawks and bald eagles during migration season to stop them from preying on ducks, which he wanted to kill for sport, according to authorities. William Custis Smith was sentenced to one day in prison and received a $9,800 fine for killing 20 'juvenile' red-shouldered hawks and bald eagles in 2023, which he claimed were 'encroaching' on his duck hunting impoundment, according to court documents. 4 The corpse of the juvenile bald eagle, which was poisoned with an insecticide by hunter William Smith. U.S. District Court in the Eastern District of Virginia 'He's a big duck hunter, and he was in the process of trying to really get it going [and attracting ducks],' Virginia Conservation Police Master Officer Brian Bratton said of Smith in a statement. 'He was killing the hawks and eagles because they were killing all the ducks he was attracting to his impoundment. It was the time of year when the hawks are migrating through,' Bratton said, adding, 'He was very aware it was illegal.' Smith baited the migrating raptors with rotting fish heads he had poisoned with the insecticide carbofuran and set up pole traps — which are designed to ensnare birds' legs, according to the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources. 4 An illegal pole trap on Smith's property ensnared the young raptors who were attracted to perch on the raised platform. U.S. District Court in the Eastern District of Virginia Investigators found a 'fresh carcass of a juvenile bald eagle' on the bird killer's Delmarva peninsula property and seized it as evidence shortly after opening their investigation, which was spawned from an anonymous tip, according to court documents. Agents installed a 'plot watcher camera' near the illegal pole trap and documented several birds being killed, including one that struggled for over seven hours before Smith beat it to death with a pole, court documents stated. A necropsy report on the bald eagle revealed the presence of carbofuran, an insecticide that was banned in 2008 because of its toxicity to humans, according to the documents. 'This particular poison acts so quickly that nine times out of 10, when an eagle, hawk or whatever eats something, it acts so quickly that they die with whatever they're eating still in their claws,' Bratton said. 4 Investigators found dead fish heads that Smith had poisoned and laid out for bait. U.S. District Court in the Eastern District of Virginia Smith admitted to investigators to 'killing in excess of 20 juvenile and mature bald eagles and hawks, primarily red-shouldered and red-tailed,' and handed over his batch of poison to authorities, according to the VDWR statement. A single, first offense violation of the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act — which outlaws killing the birds among other offenses — can carry with it a fine of $100,000 and imprisonment for up to one year, according to the US Fish and Wildlife Service. A second violation is considered a felony and results in even steeper penalties. 4 The birds were killed during migration season in an area flush with nature preserves. Jane Scott Norris via Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources Smith was charged in the US District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia and pleaded guilty to five misdemeanor charges of Unlawful Taking of a Bald Eagle, Unlawful Taking of a Migratory Bird, and Unlawful Use of a Pesticide, according to court documents. As part of the plea deal, he was ordered to pay $9,800 in restitution, serve 24 months' probation, 50 hours of community service, and spend one day in jail, according to the VDWR. Smith's hometown of Hallwood, Virginia is near several protected areas including Saxis Wildlife Management Area, Mutton Hunk Fen Natural Area Preserve, Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge, and Wallps Island National Wildlife Refuge. US Fish and Wildlife did not respond to The Post's request for comment.
Miami Herald
29-05-2025
- Miami Herald
Illegally imported tuna found in Virginia, officials say. Grocery store fined
A grocery store chain was fined after investigators found it had illegally imported more than 1,100 pounds of yellowfin tuna in Virginia, officials said. Officers learned two shipments of the jarred tuna came from a Nicaraguan fishing vessel during a June 2023 investigation in Chesapeake, officials said. The probe was conducted by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Virginia Conservation Police, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the NOAA Fisheries said in a May 28 news release. Importing 'certain non-fresh tuna products' to the U.S. from Nicaragua and six other countries is illegal because they don't meet dolphin-safety requirements under the Marine Mammal Protection Act, according to officials. The yellowfin tuna surrendered was worth more than $4,800, officials said. NOAA Fisheries did not name the grocery store chain in its release. The chain paid a $12,516 penalty in February, officials said. According to the NOAA, more than 55 new trade enforcement cases have been filed between Jan. 1 and March 31.
