buck59
03-16-2005, 04:11 AM
Ex-lawman guilty in hunting case
By CLAIR JOHNSON
Of The Gazette Staff
A former Carter County undersheriff admitted in federal court Tuesday that he twice helped two Florida men illegally hunt and transport antelope and deer from ranches near Alzada.
William John Walker, 53, of Alzada, pleaded guilty to two Lacey Act violations for knowingly transporting from Montana to Florida wildlife illegally taken in 1999 and 2000. The maximum sentence for the misdemeanor is a year in prison and a $100,000 fine.
"I took these guys on my folks' place. We did do this,'' he told the judge.
Walker, who served as undersheriff for 13 years of his nearly 18 years with the department, was suspended without pay in December and resigned last month.
Sheriff Rusty Jardee said Tuesday that Walker can have his job back if he wants it. "He's a good officer,'' Jardee said. The sheriff said a misdemeanor conviction should not bar him from returning to work.
Special U.S. Attorney Robert S. Anderson said in court records that in November 1999, co-defendants and Florida residents Frederick S. Long, a cattle buyer, and James M. Lane, now deceased, traveled to the West to buy cattle.
Long, 37, of Kissimmee, Fla., pleaded guilty in December to one count of violating the Lacey Act and is awaiting sentencing. Lane, 38, of Plant City, Fla., drowned in a boating accident in December before he could be arraigned.
While in Montana, the men met Walker, also the owner of a convenience store in Alzada. Walker said he had a friend with cattle Long might be interested in buying. The Florida men met the friend, saw some antelope and got interested in hunting.
Walker invited them to hunt and said he could provide them with "landowner licenses'' for $800 to $1,000 each.
Government witnesses would testify that Long and Lane paid Walker about $2,000 in exchange for taking them hunting although Walker denied being paid money. Walker took the men hunting onto a private ranch, where Long shot a buck mule deer and a buck antelope and Lane shot a buck mule deer.
Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks records showed that no landowner licenses were issued in 1999 to any landowner in the case and that Long and Lane had not bought hunting licenses, the prosecutor said.
Walker's adult son, Ryan, would testify that at his father's request, he drove to Alzada and met his father, Long and Lane. Knowing it was illegal, he gave his antelope tag to his father for Long's use. Walker then helped Long and Lane prepare to transport the trophy parts of the animals to Florida.
Long took the heads and capes of the two buck mule deer and buck antelope to a taxidermist in Lakeland, Fla. Long and Lane didn't fully pay for the taxidermy, so the taxidermist kept the trophies until turning them over to investigators in 2003.
According to the second count, Long, Lane and a friend returned to Montana in November 2000 and brought along three rifles and a bow. They looked up Walker, who told them he could get them onto private land and that the price of landowner tags had risen to $1,500 each.
This is the prosecution's account: The men tried to buy rifle deer licenses in Montana but found that nonresident deer tags are not available over the counter. The men agreed to pay Walker $500 each for the hunt. FWP records showed that none of the Florida men had deer hunting licenses for 2000.
Walker arranged for the Florida men to hunt on a ranch owned by a friend, Vernon Fruit, who lives out of state. In the mid-1990s, Fruit decided that he might earn some money by charging hunters a fee to hunt deer on the property and had authorized Walker to find hunters, collect a $1,000 fee per hunter and give them access to the ranch.
During the 2000 hunting season, Walker called Fruit to say he had found three trustworthy Florida hunters who wanted to hunt on the Fruit Ranch. Fruit told investigators he approved of the hunt and assumed that the hunters had hunting licenses but didn't ask Walker about it.
On Nov. 7, 2000, Walker took the Florida men to the Fruit Ranch, gave them access to the ranch house, told them where to hunt and left. The next day, Long shot a buck mule deer, cut off the head and left the carcass in the field, the prosecutor said. Long's friend shot two buck mule deer, cut off the heads and also left the carcasses in the field. Lane shot a deer but didn't retrieve it.
On Nov. 9, Tracy Fruit, who leases the ranch to run cattle, arrived to do some chores and was surprised to find the Florida hunters. The hunters told Tracy Fruit that Walker had given them permission to hunt. After the hunters left, Tracy Fruit found three freshly killed headless deer carcasses that had not been gutted.
Tracy Fruit called Walker to report the carcasses and damage to an ATV and to ask why the hunters were on the property, the prosecutor said. Shortly after the call, the hunters arrived in Alzada and met with Walker. Long and the friend gave Walker money.
"Instead of arresting or citing the men for the waste of game violation which had been reported to him by Tracy Fruit, Walker told the hunters he would take care of the carcasses at the Fruit Ranch and advised them to leave for Florida immediately,'' the prosecutor said.
Walker said in court he took $500 from the hunters and gave it to Vernon Fruit. The prosecutor said witnesses would testify that Walker came to the Fruit Ranch later that day and removed the three headless deer carcasses but that Walker denied that.
The prosecutor said the offenses were committed for money and that the market value of the wildlife was between $5,000 and $10,000.
U.S. Magistrate Richard Anderson dismissed a third count of conspiracy, set sentencing for June 16 and continued Walker's release
By CLAIR JOHNSON
Of The Gazette Staff
A former Carter County undersheriff admitted in federal court Tuesday that he twice helped two Florida men illegally hunt and transport antelope and deer from ranches near Alzada.
William John Walker, 53, of Alzada, pleaded guilty to two Lacey Act violations for knowingly transporting from Montana to Florida wildlife illegally taken in 1999 and 2000. The maximum sentence for the misdemeanor is a year in prison and a $100,000 fine.
"I took these guys on my folks' place. We did do this,'' he told the judge.
Walker, who served as undersheriff for 13 years of his nearly 18 years with the department, was suspended without pay in December and resigned last month.
Sheriff Rusty Jardee said Tuesday that Walker can have his job back if he wants it. "He's a good officer,'' Jardee said. The sheriff said a misdemeanor conviction should not bar him from returning to work.
Special U.S. Attorney Robert S. Anderson said in court records that in November 1999, co-defendants and Florida residents Frederick S. Long, a cattle buyer, and James M. Lane, now deceased, traveled to the West to buy cattle.
Long, 37, of Kissimmee, Fla., pleaded guilty in December to one count of violating the Lacey Act and is awaiting sentencing. Lane, 38, of Plant City, Fla., drowned in a boating accident in December before he could be arraigned.
While in Montana, the men met Walker, also the owner of a convenience store in Alzada. Walker said he had a friend with cattle Long might be interested in buying. The Florida men met the friend, saw some antelope and got interested in hunting.
Walker invited them to hunt and said he could provide them with "landowner licenses'' for $800 to $1,000 each.
Government witnesses would testify that Long and Lane paid Walker about $2,000 in exchange for taking them hunting although Walker denied being paid money. Walker took the men hunting onto a private ranch, where Long shot a buck mule deer and a buck antelope and Lane shot a buck mule deer.
Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks records showed that no landowner licenses were issued in 1999 to any landowner in the case and that Long and Lane had not bought hunting licenses, the prosecutor said.
Walker's adult son, Ryan, would testify that at his father's request, he drove to Alzada and met his father, Long and Lane. Knowing it was illegal, he gave his antelope tag to his father for Long's use. Walker then helped Long and Lane prepare to transport the trophy parts of the animals to Florida.
Long took the heads and capes of the two buck mule deer and buck antelope to a taxidermist in Lakeland, Fla. Long and Lane didn't fully pay for the taxidermy, so the taxidermist kept the trophies until turning them over to investigators in 2003.
According to the second count, Long, Lane and a friend returned to Montana in November 2000 and brought along three rifles and a bow. They looked up Walker, who told them he could get them onto private land and that the price of landowner tags had risen to $1,500 each.
This is the prosecution's account: The men tried to buy rifle deer licenses in Montana but found that nonresident deer tags are not available over the counter. The men agreed to pay Walker $500 each for the hunt. FWP records showed that none of the Florida men had deer hunting licenses for 2000.
Walker arranged for the Florida men to hunt on a ranch owned by a friend, Vernon Fruit, who lives out of state. In the mid-1990s, Fruit decided that he might earn some money by charging hunters a fee to hunt deer on the property and had authorized Walker to find hunters, collect a $1,000 fee per hunter and give them access to the ranch.
During the 2000 hunting season, Walker called Fruit to say he had found three trustworthy Florida hunters who wanted to hunt on the Fruit Ranch. Fruit told investigators he approved of the hunt and assumed that the hunters had hunting licenses but didn't ask Walker about it.
On Nov. 7, 2000, Walker took the Florida men to the Fruit Ranch, gave them access to the ranch house, told them where to hunt and left. The next day, Long shot a buck mule deer, cut off the head and left the carcass in the field, the prosecutor said. Long's friend shot two buck mule deer, cut off the heads and also left the carcasses in the field. Lane shot a deer but didn't retrieve it.
On Nov. 9, Tracy Fruit, who leases the ranch to run cattle, arrived to do some chores and was surprised to find the Florida hunters. The hunters told Tracy Fruit that Walker had given them permission to hunt. After the hunters left, Tracy Fruit found three freshly killed headless deer carcasses that had not been gutted.
Tracy Fruit called Walker to report the carcasses and damage to an ATV and to ask why the hunters were on the property, the prosecutor said. Shortly after the call, the hunters arrived in Alzada and met with Walker. Long and the friend gave Walker money.
"Instead of arresting or citing the men for the waste of game violation which had been reported to him by Tracy Fruit, Walker told the hunters he would take care of the carcasses at the Fruit Ranch and advised them to leave for Florida immediately,'' the prosecutor said.
Walker said in court he took $500 from the hunters and gave it to Vernon Fruit. The prosecutor said witnesses would testify that Walker came to the Fruit Ranch later that day and removed the three headless deer carcasses but that Walker denied that.
The prosecutor said the offenses were committed for money and that the market value of the wildlife was between $5,000 and $10,000.
U.S. Magistrate Richard Anderson dismissed a third count of conspiracy, set sentencing for June 16 and continued Walker's release