Behind the Badge - Right Place, Right Time
Right Place, Right Time
District Game Warden Drew Johnson
Back in March of 2020 I decided to spend a day walking one of our many WMAs.
My goal for the day was to search for any hunting equipment (tree stand, blind, camera, etc.) that was left out beyond the January 31 removal deadline.
On this particular day, I was able to locate a couple of old tree stands that were still up.
I made pins on my OnX application to come back later for removal.
On my walk back to the vehicle, I happened upon a match set of deer sheds.
Now fast forward to 11/17/2020 which was the second Tuesday of our deer gun season.
I was putting together a game plan for the afternoon of where I would like to patrol.
This can be a tough decision to make as there are so many places we try to get to within our large districts.
I finally made up my mind and headed out the door.
With about an hour of legal light left, I arrived at a WMA that’s within unit 2B.
After seeing the access points void of any activity, I began to leave the area.
As I was leaving, I observed a pick-up coming in.
I pulled over to the side of the road where I was able to speak with the two occupants of the pickup.
Both occupants had a bolt-action rifle alongside of them.
After making sure they were unloaded I then asked how the hunting was going.
The driver informed me that they weren’t hunting, but rather checking out the WMA.
The passenger also informed me that he had a deer tag but it was for unit 2I.
While speaking with the two occupants, I happened to look back and observe what appeared to be blood smeared on the inside of the tailgate.
I asked the driver if they had had any success lately.
The driver explained that he got a buck on 11/15 in the Napoleon area.
The driver stated that the head and cape were in the bed of the pickup and that they were going to drop it off with a taxidermist later that evening.
I then inspected the buck and observed it to have a 2I tag on it, which supported the driver’s story.
I asked as many questions as I could as it seemed very odd for overall circumstances that evening.
All checked out and we parted ways shortly after.
Now here’s where things get interesting.
Two nights later, I woke up in the middle of the night and made a connection.
I remembered the characteristics of the rack in the pick-up and the set of the sheds I had collected earlier that year.
The distance between where I found the sheds and where I spoke with the two individuals was approximately ½ mile.
I did not sleep a wink the rest of that night.
The next day I called the taxidermist who ended up with the buck.
A meeting was setup to bring the sheds to compare them to the actual deer.
A few days later I was finally able to make it to the taxidermist.
I requested a neighboring warden to join me to have another set of eyes to look everything over.
As we examined the rack and compared it to the sheds we instantly noticed the many similar characteristics.
Based off the similarities between the rack and sheds, it was now time to prove it.
I applied for and was granted a search warrant to remove a sample from the rack.
After collecting that sample, I then drilled into the bur of one of the sheds and collected a sample of the shavings.
After both samples were packaged up, I then sent them off to the Wyoming Game and Fish Wildlife Forensic and Fish Health Laboratory for DNA analysis.
While waiting for the results to come back, I decided to call the individual who shot the buck to ask a few questions.
The individual answered the phone but was too busy to talk and informed me that he would call back when he had some free time.
That call never came and when I decided to call him, I was greeted with an automated message that stated that the line had been disconnected.
I then called the individual who was the passenger in the pickup.
He informed me that driver had nothing to say and was adamant that the deer was killed in unit 2I.
On 01/25/2021, I received the phone call I was patiently waiting for.
It was the Forensic Program Manager from the lab who informed me that the DNA from the shed antler matched that of the rack.
I then met with the State’s Attorney to present my case.
After our meeting, a decision was made to charge the shooter with Illegal Possession/Take, Hunting in Wrong Unit, Hunt Big Game Without a License, and False Information to Law Enforcement.
On 02/02/2021, the individual arrived at the courthouse for his initial appearance.
After court wrapped up, the individual approached me and informed me that he would like to speak with me about the buck.
The individual laid out everything regarding that buck and how he illegally killed it near the WMA where the sheds were collected.
The individual ended up pleading guilty to Illegal Possession/Take-Big Game and False Information to Law Enforcement both of which are an A Misdemeanor.
A 2-year suspension was also imposed on the individual.
The passenger was subsequently charged as well and pled guilty to False Information to Law Enforcement, Aiding in Concealment of Unlawful Game and Hunting in Wrong Unit.