A person from Powell, Wyoming has been accused of a number of wildlife violations involving grizzly bears, bald and golden eagles, and bighorn sheep.
An affidavit obtained by the Powell Tribune alleges that Grant L. Cadawaller shot and killed 4 grizzlies and illegally collected 12 bighorn sheep skulls, as nicely feathers and talons from federally-protected bald and golden eagles.
Cadwallader plead not responsible to all 18 misdemeanor fees in Park County Circuit Courtroom on Thursday, October 19.
In accordance with native studies, brokers with the Wyoming Sport and Fish Division (WGFD) and the US Fish & Wildlife Service (USFWS) started investigating Cadwallader after his ex-wife reported the alleged violations as a part of a custody dispute.
The brokers raided his residence in December 2019 and located eagle feathers and talons in a jar.
The search additionally turned up greater than 20 bighorn sheep heads and horns, together with a number of grizzly bear claws hooked up to “an ornate necklace”, the affidavit states.
Two Separate Grizzly Bear Incidents
Courtroom paperwork declare that Cadwallader and a fellow shed hunter shot at and killed a grizzly bear that charged them in thick timber in a distant part of Wyoming’s North Fork draining someday between 2017 and 2022—after which did not report the incident to the correct authorities. Different fees stem from an incident in the identical common space, throughout which Cadwallader allegedly shot and killed a unique charging grizzly after which went on to shoot its two 30-pound cubs. That incident occurred between 2002 and 2004, in keeping with the affidavit.
The affidavit was written by WGFD sport warden Travis Crane. Each Crane and a federal wildlife agent interviewed Cadwallader in 2021 after the 2019 search of his residence. Within the affidavit, Crane wrote that Cadwallader stated he didn’t report the alleged grizzly bear killings as a result of “he was terrified of being prosecuted and going to jail.” Whereas grizzlies are protected underneath federal regulation within the Decrease 48, they are often legally killed in instances involving reliable self protection.
“Instantly after the sow disappeared, the cubs stood up and checked out Cadwallader, who instantly shot and killed every certainly one of them with out even fascinated with it,” Crane wrote, describing Cadwallader’s account of the incident. “It was presently that Cadwallader appeared nearer on the cubs, realizing they had been every about 30 kilos in measurement. Cadwallader felt horrible about taking pictures them and at what he had simply performed.”
After firing three pictures on the sow with a sidearm, the affidavit says, Cadwallader discovered the grizzly useless in a ravine and eliminated 5 of its claws. In his 2021 interview with Crane, he estimated that the incident involving the sow and cubs passed off as much as 19 years in the past.
Unlawful Assortment of Feathers, Talons, and Skulls
Twelve of the 18 fees in opposition to Cadwallader relate to 12 bighorn sheep skulls that brokers seized at his residence in 2019. Prosecutors say he collected these skulls in California and Washington whereas doing wildlife seize work for a non-public firm, and that he introduced the skulls again to Wyoming with out acquiring and the correct interstate sport tags.
The investigation additionally turned up a photograph of the Cadwallader and a companion posing with a useless golden eagle. The companion reportedly instructed authorities that the eagle had been hit by a automobile alongside a freeway in Utah. The affidavit doesn’t say whether or not the talons and feathers seized in 2019 belonged to the useless eagle within the photograph, the Powell Tribune studies.
In accordance with Wyoming-based Cowboy State Day by day, Cadwallader’s grizzly bear-related fees include most penalties of as much as one yr in jail and attainable fines and restitution totaling $35,000. If convicted, he might additionally lose searching privileges in Wyoming and different states for as much as six years. His subsequent path is about for March 7, 2024 in Park County Circuit Courtroom.
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This text by Travis Corridor was first printed by Discipline and Stream on 20 October 2023. Lead Picture: Grizzly bears are protected underneath the federal Endangered Species Act within the Decrease 48.