Crime and Courts

Men accused of shooting into elk herd illegally admit guilt

Posted: Mar 14, 2013 11:49 AM

BOZEMAN - Three Butte area men have pleaded guilty to hunting violations after they reportedly shot into a herd of elk on private property.

On Nov. 18, John Foley and Michael Hoar of Butte, and Edmund McSweeney of Ramsay, along with a 15-year-old hunter, pursued a group of elk with a vehicle, trespassed through a property and located the group of elk on another property, according to a news release from Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks. At that point, they reportedly started shooting into the herd from the road and continued firing while moving onto private property.

One cow elk was killed, and at least three other cow elk were wounded. Two of the wounded elk were taken by hunters later that day.

No one in the group had the required license to hunt cow elk in the hunting district nor did they have permission from the private landowners. Each man pleaded guilty to hunting without a license and unlawful possession of a game animal.

Foley was fined $1,070 and ordered to pay restitution of $1,000. He also lost his hunting, fishing and trapping privileges for 48 months. Both Hoar and McSweeney were fined $1,035 and lost their hunting, fishing and trapping privileges for 48 months. The 15-year-old was not charged.

"On top of the violations themselves and their
blatant disregard for safety, it's really unfortunate to see the way in which these three adults modeled unlawful and unethical hunting behavior to the young hunter in their company. Hopefully, this will be a hard lesson learned," Boulder area Game Warden Justin Gibson said in the release.