Worthey D. Wiles III was sentenced yesterday for killing an endangered Whooping crane on San Jose Island near the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge.
A judge ordered 42 yr. old Mr. Wiles to pay a $5,000 fine and make a $10,000 community service payment to Friends of Aransas and Matagorda Island National Wildlife Refuges, a nonprofit group that supports the refuge. In addition, Wiles will serve one year on probation.
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I stand corrected. $5,000 fine and $10,000 “community service payment” (what is that?) is $15,0000 all together. But the last person that turned himself in got a $85,000 fine – no? I should think killing an endangered species near any wildlife refuge, fines should be even larger than elsewhere, as the hunters should know better
In my opinion, the gentleman was an honorable man who as a hunter did exactly what he should have, contacted the authorities, cooperated, and was “rewarded” with a misdemeanor for that cooperation and honesty. HOWEVER, his big mistake, again as a hunter, was not to educate himself about the area he was hunting in and determining what the rules and regulations were for that area. He says no one told him, but did he even ask or inquire? So was the punishment too light? I’m sure everyone will look at it differently, but personally I will give anyone who honestly admits their mistakes and guilt the benefit of the doubt any day as opposed to those who perform egregious acts and then try to cover them up. You can bet that the individual in question will either never hunt again, or will make dang sure that he is up to date regarding local laws before venturing out again – so in this case, the fine is probably suitable.
So glad to hear that the current laws are being enforced.
I question the last statement in the article “This case is only the fifth known shooting death of a whooping crane since 1968.” Please correct me if I’m wrong, but I thought the number was painfully closer to 10 or higher?
That is a bit misleading, unless they are referring only to the Wood Buffalo-Aransas flock
Looks lke we went the wrong way with the fine – what the heck???? A lousy $5,000? That should be a huge deterrent for others…. plus the killing was near a wildlife refuge. Unreal. Can we protest?
It was actually $15000.00: $5000 fine and $10000 to the Friends group. While we’re certainly upset that this happened, Mr. Wiles did report the incident immediately and cooperated fully with investigators. He does not have a history with the authorities.
Mr. Wiles also appears to be truly remorseful right from the start. This is the kind of person who can learn from a mistake. Heftier fines and conditions are appropriate in cases like the poachings in Indiana.
I agree