Calif. poacher fined $50,000; banned from Oregon

Portland, Ore. (AP) – A California man has been fined $50,000
and banned for life from hunting in Oregon for poaching a trophy
bull elk.

Federal prosecutors said 38-year-old Ronald Ray Jurin of
Redding, Calif., pleaded guilty to a felony violation of the Lacey
Act, which prohibits the import, export, sale or transport of
wildlife taken in violation of any state or foreign law.

Jurin killed the massive elk in September 2006 without a tag
authorizing him to hunt in the popular Wenaha Unit in the
northeastern corner of the state.

U.S. Attorney Karin Immergut called Jurin “cowardly” and said
poaching “is unfair to real hunters who work hard and play by
Oregon’s hunting rules.”

Half the fine will go to an Oregon Zoo fund that protects
threatened and endangered species.