Sentenced for Illegal Taking/Wasting, Dec. 11

In November of 2016, an Oregon State Police (OSP) Fish & Wildlife Trooper responded to a location near Elgin, Oregon where two large bull elk were shot and completely left to waste. At the time, OSP was not able to develop any suspects and therefor, put forward a public request for information relating to the unlawful taking of the two bull elk. Through the assistance of the Oregon Hunter’s Association Turn-In-Poacher (TIP) program, as well as the public information request, three suspects were identified and following the investigation, were charged with multiple wildlife offenses. One of the individuals, Nathan William Crouch (27) of Elgin, was recently sentenced for his involvement with these crimes after admitting that he was the one that shot both elk. On November 27th, 2017, Crouch plead guilty to four misdemeanor offenses and Union County Circuit Court Judge Thomas Powers sentenced Crouch with the following: 60 days in jail, an 8 year hunting license suspension as well as other stipulations, and $17,500 in restitution, $16,000 of which will go to the Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife. In an Elkhorn Media Group article, Union County Senior Deputy District Attorney, Christopher L. Storz commented that “The defendants in this case just left these animals to rot. They took nothing and by the time they were found, no meat was salvageable. Cases like this one emphasize the need for felonies in the Oregon Game Code, something that currently just isn’t provided for under Oregon law”. Under current Oregon law, wildlife offenses such as this can only be charged as a class A misdemeanor with a maximum penalty of one year in jail and fines not to exceed $6,250.