The man pleaded guilty to a gross misdemeanor of unlawfully killing or possessing a big game animal in the wrong area. As a result, he was ordered by the court to pay a $500 fine, forfeit his 2001 hunting license and deer tag, agree not to purchase hunting licenses in Nevada or any other state for five years, forfeit his hunting bow, forfeit a buck deer mount, write a letter of apology to a Lincoln County landowner and make a $1,000 donation to Operation Game Thief.

The case resulted from an investigation by the Nevada Division of Wildlife (NDOW). Doug Nielsen, NDOW game warden, said that in August 2000, the poacher harvested a 4x4 buck mule deer during the archery season in Hunt Area 23, but possessed a tag for Hunt Area 7.

In a related case, a 33-year-old Henderson man, the first's hunting companion, was sentenced in June of this year to two counts of obstructing a public officer in an incident that involved harvesting a 6x5 buck deer in Hunt Area 23 while possessing a tag for Hunt Area 7. That incident also took place in August 2000.

The court ordered the second man to not purchase a Nevada hunting license for five years, forfeit his archery hunting equipment, forfeit an upland game bird hunt that he won in a big buck contest, perform 1,000 hours of community service, pay $320 in fines and donate $1,000 to Operation Game Thief. Medical considerations were taken into consideration during sentencing.