Jackboot Watch update: Federal charges against grizzly shooter dad dropped after uproar, but…
A week ago, I spotlighted the persecution and attempted prosecution of an Idaho man who shot a grizzly bear to protect his family. Local and state officials determined he did nothing wrong — and in fact, went out of his way to alert authorities.
Nevertheless, the warped U.S. Attorney’s Office moved to put him on trial in October.
Here’s the good news: The eco-zealous feds have backed off and dropped the charges.
Here’s the bad news: They made Hill pay a $1,000 fine.
Why?
The U.S. Attorney’s Office has dropped misdemeanor charges against a Porthill, Idaho, man who shot and killed a grizzly bear in his yard.
Instead, Jeremy M. Hill was issued a citation for the May 8 shooting of the male grizzly, and paid a $1,000 fine.
A press release issued by the U.S. Attorney’s Office said that state and federal wildlife officials were unable to establish the location of Hill’s children when three grizzly bears were first sighted in the yard, about forty yards from the Hill home. Hill told law enforcement officers that he last saw his children outside playing basketball in front of their home, but that he didn’t know where his children were when he saw the three grizzly bears near his pig pen. The two other bears ran off after Hill shot the 2-year-old male.
U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson said that dismissal of the criminal charge was based in part on Hill’s prompt notification of the shooting to Idaho Fish & Game officials.
“The United States Attorney’s Office well understands Mr. Hill is a concerned husband and father who wants to protect his family,” said Olson. “Anyone who observes or hears of a grizzly bear near campsites or residences must immediately contact fish and wildlife officials.”
Hill says he just wants to put the whole thing behind him:
Hill didn’t return a call seeking comment.
However, in a written statement he said, “I am thankful that the government has dismissed all criminal charges against me in this case.”
He said he paid the fine to avoid putting his family, which includes six children, through the emotional strain and the cost of a trial.
“I am glad this issue has been resolved out of court and I am looking forward to putting this unfortunate incident behind me,” Hill said.
It is a damned shame that the feds extracted a fine from him in these hard economic times and made an example of him after making his life hell for defending his property and family.
Warped green values at work.
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was it a fine, or a forced campaign contribution? this stinks worse than a letter from the teamsters.
Lesson learned: DON’T call the Feds and report the breaking of their anti-human laws.
The crime here is the shakedown by the federal government of this kind and obviously sound-minded family man.
He made an understandable decision not to offer himself on the altar of making a point…albeit a righteous point…at the expense of his family’s peace and pocketbook, for defending against federal charges would have cost far more than $1k.
For that, I am even more impressed with him than I was before.
..while the bear is busy dismembering the family members involved.
The DoJ people involved have no clue of the things they render judgment upon.
Congrats to Hill. Sorry about the fine, but at least it’s possible to move forward now.
I have seen this before. Many times when someone is being squeezed by some local govt. or agency it is not the whole organization coming down on someone but usually just one or two people who says to themselves “We could let this go but just to be safe let’s start an investigation.”
That way it then is taken out of that person’s hands and they just slink away or act as if they are sympathetic but there is nothing they can do when in fact they could have stopped it before it started.
It costs them nothing to put someone through what could be a very expensive legal process and many times they will do it because they have nothing better to do.
Grizzlies don’t pay taxes, vote, nor receive social security, people do. Did our beloved federal government jackboot enforcers not realize this.
SHOOT, SHOVEL & SHUT UP.
Next time, Mr. Hill should just rent a backhoe and bury the bear. It would be cheaper.
You need to put that on a t-shirt with the bear’s picture. Proceeeds can go to pay for the fine.
does this mean i cannot make the ducks nesting under one of my bushes rent, to help pay my property tax bill? they were given voter i.d. cards from the local democrat representatives.
Because all campsites have good cellphone coverage?
When seconds count, the Fish & Wildlife Officials are only minutes (or hours) away.
The Idaho legislature should pass a “Shoot first and Report Later” law.
And if he had previously donated to the DNC…???
“Why did they drop the charges? He chose to live there, and it was his dog that chased the bear.”/sarc
I’m sure Olsen meant to say that fish and wildlife officials should be contacted AFTER you ensure your own safety…..right?
I have a close family member that was intimately involved in this kind of wildlife work, and I am 100% certain he would be laughing at the suggestion that such an operation could be executed in a matter of minutes (probably even a few hours). More typical, a 4-6 hour prep time would be considered a very good response (depending on location), but one day would be considered ‘normal’.
Your helpful wildlife dept. is days away, when seconds count!
I don’t blame Mr. Hill for paying the fine and failing to discuss it furthur. Our governments really can be vindictive, I know that for a fact. Mr. Hill did all the right things at the right times, best to him and his family.
petee #10
IRS will not me claim all my dogs and cats as dependents either!! OH I forgot I don’t have any dogs or cats, just the dog and cat crap in my yard from the neighbors. Maybe that is the reason the IRS is auditing me again ’07 & ’09, just get to claim more legal expences, learned my lesson from the 1st audit.
The feds must have realized they opened a can of worms with this. Thus, they drop the charges, but to save face, they still hit him with a fine.
Next time, use the 3S rule.
No doubt this man paid the fine rather than fight because he knew the legal fees would wipe him out. A rock and a hard place. And all he did wrong was protect his family. We have GOT to get the enviro-knuckleheads out of power!
Federal fish and game is a racket anyway. Found a crane with a broken wing and they refused to do anything about it – just let nature take its course. They told me I would be subject to a $10K fine if I put it out of its misery. I would like to drop the department head off in south LA with a broken leg and let nature take its course.
More from the you’re welcome to defend yourself as much as you want after you’re dead agenda, big, kill you quick grizzly version.
Charging you for their bad acting is typical in a lot of courtrooms and government actions, its another form of tax to the max syndrome.
It would really help to keep pressure on named officials on this case. To just say that “federal authorities decided” allows the individuals responsible for this outrage to disappear behind the curtain unscathed.
Where can we send him some money?
So after protecting his family from a bear the man had to protect his family from the government. UFB
What exactly was the fine for? It was extortion money. Payup or be persecuted fully.
Is there a fund set up to raise the fine for this family?
IMHO, this man saved two bears by teaching them that getting near people and/or attacking pigs gets you killed. Lesson learned. Sacrifice the one to save two more. The guy should be hailed a hero by the environuts.
Soooooo, if you kill it, it’s a $10k fine. A predator kills it, aaaaaand, that’s alright. It makes absitively, posolutely NO difference to the crane.
Only the Government could think of something like that.
I think it’s safe to say the lunatics are running the asylum.
I know the town raised about $20k for his legal defense.
I wonder how these “officials” would feel if the shoe was on the other foot. What would they do if they were faced with the same situation? I hope that it never comes to that as I fear their family would not be as well prepared.
Silly guy. These “officials” always are exempted themselves or have perpetual waivers to avoid having to be on the other foot.
Been running it for some time now. Got their foot in the door in the ’60′s and its all been going downhill from there.
All the more reason to drastically downsize the federal government and its bureaucracies. Its difficult enough to deal with local, county and state lunatics.
Lesson learned from this episode. No, not don’t shoot the bear to protect your family. It’s shoot, shovel and shut up.
My guess is that although he’s gone through a lot of hassle, Mr. Hill will be able to recoup the fine. Whether the fine was $100, $500, $1,000, or more, I believe that it’s the principle of the whole thing that is disturbing. I believe it would be poetic justice for the Republicans to significantly reduce funding to DFW and fine them for their obnoxious behavior.
Bears before humans.
That’s why I’m no longer an environmentalist.
They have absolutely zero regard for human life.
In fact, they despise humanity.
Liberal misanthropism is their religion.
I bet those T’shirts would be a big seller to SEIU and the Teamsters, given their proclivity to violent rhetoric.
Too bad. Seems like a waste to bury a potential good fur coat, and how does bear meat taste anyway and how many people could potentially feed off the meat of a typical bear?
Funny but good. By the way, the “Shovel & Shut Up” part sounds pretty much like Barky’s theme for his jobs lecture to us tonight.
The less the government knows, about us, the better. “Shoot, shovel, and shut up” would have been the best course if the family was sure no one would ever know.
A girl got in trouble for rescuing a wood pecker. We did the same years ago. The young bird lived in our house, our children taught it how to eat after we consulted with the humane society, and 15 days later, we released it.
You forgot to give credit to Jimmy Hoffa for that slogan. That was him, wasn’t it?
In Jimmy’s case it was:
SHOOT, SHOVEL & INSTALL ASTROTURF COVER.
Wouldn’t that be fun to do to liberals in general? Would make for a great reality show….
nah, I would’t give our human animals the pleasure. Why not let some bears have some fun with him. Drop him off deep in Grizzly country with a broken leg….rubbed down with bacon grease so he can get close up and personal with a live hungry bear or two.
On the contrary, they know exactly what they’re doing, and that is the problem.
I read a great many comments to the effect that these people are thoughtless, ignorant, ill-informed, or stupid. If these any or all these factors were in operation there would be an equal chance, or chances, that they would err on the side of what is right and proper. To so consistently choose evil-action from which descend their excremental fruits exposes the hidden face of who they really are.
We conservatives ate so afraid of the “conspiracy nut” label that we don’t look for patterns. Indeed, we eschew seeing them even when they’re painted in glowing flashing neon – with klaxons and disaster-whistles sounding all around it!
These people have stated that their reason for breathing is to destroy Western Civilization. Everything they do is geared towards that end. To ascribe “accidental”, “ignorant”, “shallowness”, and “stupidity” as motivations allows these people a free hand to operate as they would. If I hear again that a law has negative “unintended” consequences I’ll yank that last hair from my bald pate! Really unintended consequences would occasionally fall on our side of the street!
/rant
Good thing that bear was not a Muslim, or Hill would’ve had Hell to pay.
Well, in this case, the perfect canditates for the PPV event would be our local big city leftist civic leaders and political cronies as perfect justice for creating the current environment in our urban jungles.
Oh, and that Saturday Night Special? It would be unloaded with instructive hints as to where to go to find the ammunition, with another over/under as to how long it would take to find and load it.
Also included should be a statement that it is an unlicensed weapon and the penalty for possessing an unlicensed weapon, which in the case of NYC, would be a mandatory jail sentence. Alternatively, the box could also contain a cell phone to call 911. Care to bet on which choice they would make?
An appropriate name for the show would be “Scared Right”, a takeoff of the show Scared Straight.
And don’t forget the mandatory gun lock, and mandatory background check before they can use said weapon to defend themselves.
Well, well, it seems that to the eco-terror liberals, it’s not about the animals, and the protection thereof, but it’s about the money.
He should pay his fine and any lawyer fees, buy himself a nice new big bore rifle so he doesn’t have to borrow his daughter’s, and donate the rest to something that will tick off the US Attorney… NRA, maybe.
Aren’t you supposed to throw it into a windmill or is that only for Eagles?
No human assistance is allowed….Ealges don’t have a monopoly on flying into windmill blades, but all birds must do it on its own.
Right! And other written clues provided as to where to find the key to remove the lock, the background check and special permit and waiver for cities that have strict gun control laws, all of which must be in the possesion of the user before the gun can be fired.
Or on break.
Lived next to one of their headquarters for nearly three years. Never saw a single one of them in person out in the field. This was in the Great Plains—far as the eye could see.
Something happened to you out there, you were on your own.
Lesson learned. Next time, tell the fed it’s a TEA PARTY bear and no one will care.
Looks like another case of call the authorities(cops) they are only 5 minutes away…hmmm….maybe 50 minutes in a case like this, instead of you handling the situation yourself.
Another wacko, power hungry, U.S. Attorney. He’s looks to be qualified to prosecute immigration patrol agents that do their jobs.
Question, why was he fined if he was not found guilty of illegally shooting the bear, but a misdemeanor of what, possibly saving his family?
These officials should relocate themselves to the Galapagos islands.
No speargun, knife, firearm, bow…nada.
Give them one year on the rock surrounded by wildlife that has one agenda, to eat you!
Then get back to us.
I was assuming of course the wild life office was next door, maybe 100 ft away.
Who’d believe it? The bear was caught red-handed trying to “spread the wealth”.
Extorting $1000 from the dad after he protected his family is just the Obama way. That’s the Democratic vision of America, individuals having to pay through the nose to exercise their god-given rights. The argument in favor of him paying: either that or hire yourself a lawyer for several times that amount.
I’m surprised they haven’t charged him with child abuse for giving his daughter a… (gulp) GUN!
The horror!
The guy should fight the fine in court. I wouldn’t pay the bastards a nickel if I were him. I would relish a jury trial.
Poor SOB should’ve shot his dog instead. After all, the dog started it.
I wouldn’t be surprised if the actual number of self-defense cases involving humans or animals is MUCH HIGHER than reported, especially in jurisdictions with this kind of insanity leveled toward the victim.
““Anyone who observes or hears of a grizzly bear near campsites or residences must immediately contact fish and wildlife officials.”
Yeah right. And then they can show up later, speed dial your number, and find the pile of bear crap that was once you, with a intact cell phone in it.
Oh, they made him pay the fine so they would be able to say “We let him off because of all the publicity…..but we were still right.”
Marxists believe that self-defense is wrong so $1000 fine for the victim.
hawkeye54 #42:
I had posted before that the jerk U.S. Attorney should be covered in honey, huckleberries and pine nuts, then dropped in bear country. Now, if you add bacon bits and break her leg, you have a heck of a PPV event. Maybe we could make bets in Vegas to see how long the idiot lasts. Make your bets, ladies and gentlemen! Oh, well, you can only dream…
To be fair, if he selfishly hadn’t had children – they wouldn’t have been outside to begin with.
And the pigs? Why doesn’t he guzzle cheeseburgers and shakes like the first lady instead of raising his own food like some sort of entrepreneurial capitalist pig?
“But we are going to jack him over anyway.” She said gleefully.
After learning about this incident, you can bet people won’t be calling Fish and Game if they have to shoot a threatening bear. This idiot Olsen has actively discouraged people from complying with the law.
According to her bio, she had very little actual trial experience before she was appointed US Attorney. but you can bet she has impeccable liberal credentials. I don’t see any connection to eco-zealotry, animal rights groups or anti-gun groups, but we all know how most liberals view those issues. Her actions in this case suggest she has a serious common-sense deficiency, at the very least.
Actually don’t break her leg….make it more sporting for the bear. It’d be exciting to see her fear as she unsuccessfully attempts to outrun a griz.
I’d don’t use PPV much, but I’d pay to see such a deserving eco-zealot earn her just reward.
Remember, language matters.
Mr Hill was a political prisoner.
Otherwise law-abiding citizens who are arrrested by the leftist nitwits for breaking the tiniest bit of the arcane laws and regulations pushed on us by the leftist nitwits are political prisoners.
(These are the same nitwits who refuse to prosecute the real criminals, violent felons, repeat offenders, etc.)
Language matters. The left has mastered this. We have a lot of catching up to do on that front. Choose your words carefully, not just for denotation, but for connotation and implication.
hawkeye54:
BACON AKBAR!!!!
On September 8th, 2011 at 9:36 am, firemission said:
SHOOT, SHOVEL & SHUT UP.
I first read about the “Shoot, shovel and shut up” advice in regard to some California property owner who was in a dispute with authorities over planned property development where some ‘endangered’ critter was discovered. The advice was too late for the landowner in the dispute, but was offered to others that were contemplating similar developments.
I believe it could apply here as well.
He did the job that the forest service was supposed to do to protect us from over friendly bears so send them a bill – for $1000 for his professional services … plus another $2.00 for the ammunition.
And that gives them the power to fine him? I thought that under the principles of our legal system, they had to prove he and his family were not in danger, and that his act was overtly criminal?
Oh, wait, I’m accusing government of requiring “principles”. My bad…