Category: Non-typical Stuff

Selling Hunts Illegally

A ranch manager in Live Oak County, Texas, has been nailed for selling deer hunts on a property he was paid to look after. Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TWD) game wardens recently wrapped up a six month multistate investigation of an illegal commercial hunting operation on a ranch in Live Oak County. The result: Ranch manager busted.

A landowner contacted game wardens regarding his ranch manager selling white-tailed deer hunts under the table and hunting without landowner consent. Sounds like a bad decision by the ranch manager. Furthermore, it’s a bad deal for everyone involved from the landowner to deer hunters.

Ranch Manger Busted

The landowner learned of the illegal deer hunting activities when contacted by a taxidermist regarding an unpaid balance for several buck mounts belonging to the ranch manager. The landowner did not give the ranch manager or his family permission to harvest any animals on the ranch.

During an extensive investigation, wardens determined the ranch manager sold trophy buck hunts to out of state clients, pocketing their money, and falsifying the ranch harvest records.

Ranch Manager Busted Over Bucks

The ranch manager was responsible for brokering illegal hunts for 14 white-tailed deer (with scores ranging from 245 B&C to under 100 B&C) and numerous exotic game animals. The ranch manager and his daughter also unlawfully appropriated $17,450 from the ranch owner. Okay, that’s just straight up taking cash out of the register.

Hunters paid for their deer hunts by check made out to the ranch manager or daughter instead of to the ranch. The wardens obtained arrest warrants for the ranch manager for hunting without consent for white-tailed deer and exotic animals. Basically, ranch manager busted. He was arrested without incident.

If you’ve got a deer hunt scheduled for this fall in Live Oak County, then you may want to touch base with the ranch to make sure you’re still good to go.

Deer Trouble in Lakeway

Managing overabundant deer populations is an ongoing issue in many areas across the US. Such programs are almost always controversial. Now, a Central Texas woman is facing charges for interfering with one such program in Lakeway, Texas. And it was all captured on video.

In the video, which was taken on March 8, you can see several white-tailed deer captured under a drop net, with some of them bleating. Now months later, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) has charged Ashlea Beck, who also took the video, with criminal mischief and harassment after she freed two of the deer by cutting the net with household scissors.

Beck’s Deer Trapping Video

How Can Deer be Trapped?

Lakeway, located just northwest of Austin, has been managing white-tailed deer for over 20 years. The City of Lakeway maintains a permit by TPWD to reduce the the number of deer living within the city.

Whitetail deer are removed annually by trappers working under the City’s Trap, Transport and Process (TTP) Permit authorized by TPWD. Entities possessing a TTP are allowed to trap and transport deer to commercial processing facility, where deer are dispatched, processed and donated to local charities — a must under permit rules.

The permit allows the City of Lakeway to address excessive deer numbers in an area where hunting as a means of reducing the deer population is not considered feasible. According to the TPWD web site, TTP permits are available to municipalities, political subdivisions, and certain qualified individuals.

Lakeway’s Deer Trapping in the News

At one point in the video, you can hear her ask the workers, “Why are you doing this?”

Angry with what she saw, Beck cut part of the net and released two deer.

“I think they should do it away from kids, away from families,” Beck told KVUE in an interview on March 14.

Months later, Texas Parks and Wildlife has charged Beck with criminal mischief and harassment. A TPWD spokesperson sent KVUE the following statement:

“Ms. Beck interfered with lawful efforts to trap and remove white-tailed deer, causing damage to private property in the process. It is a violation of the Sportsman’s Rights Act to intentionally interfere with another person lawfully engaged in the process of hunting or catching wildlife, or intentionally harass, drive, or disturb any wildlife for the purpose of disrupting lawful hunting.”

Citizen Advocates for Animals of Lakeway president Rita Cross told KVUE she thinks Beck’s punishment is too harsh.

“She was in shock, she was trying to protect her kids and the deer, and she released two of them when she cut the net,” Cross said.

Cross thought TPWD would give Beck a warning or a fine.

A Few Less Big Bucks

Grayson County, Texas, is well known for producing big whitetail bucks each and every year. In fact, the county is one of only a handful of counties in Texas where bowhunting is the only legal means of deer harvest. Bowhunting no doubt makes deer hunting more challenging for hunters, but it also allows bucks to get old, big.

As deer hunters, we will go to great lengths in pursuit of a trophy white-tailed buck. Unfortunately, poachers are willing to go even farther, breaking ethical rules and game laws designed to protect and conserve prized wildlife resources.

Investigations into the illegal take of three whitetail bucks seized by Grayson County game wardens during the 2016-2017 deer hunting season illustrate just how far some folks are willing to go to bag a trophy buck.

The cases filed against the individuals responsible for illegally taking the three seized deer, which have a combined gross Boone & Crockett score of over 535 inches, and a combined civil restitution value of $34,954.80, should serve as a warning to would be criminals.

Grayson County Monster Shot from Road

Arguably, one of the most bizarre of the three cases involved the biggest buck. Rumors spread like wildfire after photos of a huge 19-point buck surfaced. Game wardens received information suggesting the hunter’s story didn’t add up. On Dec. 16, 2016, the man who killed the big buck, John Walker Drinnon, 34, of Whitesboro, Texas, told game wardens that he killed the 19-pointer on public hunting land in Oklahoma. The wardens had obtained a game camera image of the deer in question, photographed on public hunting land on the Texas side of Lake Texoma, which contradicted Drinnon’s claim.

Working with their counterparts in Oklahoma and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service agents to build a case, game wardens eventually obtained a confession from Drinnon that he had killed the buck in Grayson County from a public roadway with a rifle. Charges were filed against Drinnon for taking a deer without landowner consent (a state jail felony), hunting without landowner consent and hunting from a vehicle (Class A misdemeanors). Drinnon was also issued citations for no hunting license, hunting from the public roadway, no hunter education, and illegal means and methods.

On Oct. 12, Drinnon pled guilty to the felony charge of taking a whitetail deer without landowner consent in 15th District Court in Sherman, Texas. Civil restitution on the deer, which scored 202 B&C, was estimated at $18,048.10.

Advances in stealth surveillance technology have made game cameras essential gear for serious deer hunters. In Grayson County, wary old bucks present a challenge for bowhunters, but seldom escape the camera or coffee shop gossip.

Another Grayson County Buck Caught on Camera

While Timothy Kane Sweet, 37, of Sherman, didn’t claim the 19-pointer he bagged originated out of state, he did attempt to hide the fact it was another Grayson County monster buck. Sweet claimed he killed the deer in neighboring Fannin County. What he failed to consider while concocting his tale was that the deer, which scored 177 B&C, exhibited a unique rack that had been captured on a game camera in Grayson County.

Once again, rumors flared and tips sparked a game warden investigation. During an interview with the game warden, Sweet claimed he made a poor shot on the deer that didn’t draw blood, but returned to the area later that evening to inspect. When the buck jumped up and began to run off, Sweet said he shot it five or six times illegally at night with a pistol.

On Oct. 20, Sweet pled no contest to charges of illegal means and methods, improperly tagged whitetail deer, and hunting out of season (Class C misdemeanors) in Justice of the Peace Court in Whitesboro, Texas. Civil restitution was estimated at $10,664.35.

Big Grayson County 10 Point Buck

The third case involves an individual who killed a big 10-point buck during the 2016-17 hunting season and attempted to take advantage of hunting license benefits reserved for disabled veterans. Brian Eugene Culp, 47, of Gunter, Texas, tagged the 157-inch B&C whitetail using a Super Combo hunting and fishing license (available at no cost to disabled veterans) that he did not qualify to possess.

On May 19, Culp pled no contest in Justice of the Peace Court in Whitesboro to a charge of hunting without a valid license. Civil restitution was estimated at $6,242.35.

“These cases exemplify the hard work and dedication state game wardens deliver day in and day out to enforce Texas game laws,” said Col. Grahame Jones, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department Law Enforcement Division Director. “I want to extend special recognition and gratitude to Grayson County game wardens Michael Hummert and Daron Blackerby for a job well done.”

Grayson County game wardens would like to thank the public for their assistance in these cases. Game wardens would also like to remind the public that they can report any illegal hunting activity to Texas Game Wardens using Operation Game Thief at 800-792-GAME or by contacting their local game warden.

Giant Buck in LA

Another BBD (big buck down), this time just to the east of me in the state of Louisiana. The state known as the Sportsman’s Paradise is living up to its name, at least for one persistent hunter that was able to scout deer, big deer, right from his office.

It’s just about prime time for white-tailed deer hunting in my part of the world and all the recent photos of giant, hunter-harvested bucks are getting my pumped up. And even though it’s Monday, the temperatures, which were in the 40’s this morning, are telling me I need to be spending more time outside right now… much more time.

Hunter Arrows Big Buck in Louisiana

The Big Buck’s Story

Louisiana Sportsman: A St. Francisville dentist on Oct. 5 arrowed what could be the largest Louisiana non-typical deer to be killed with a bow — and he was hunting pretty much where he works.

“I killed the deer inside the city limits — behind my dentist office,” Dr. Frank Sullivan said of the 18-pointer that grossed between 220 and 230 points.

Sullivan said he and buddy Dr. Travis Links, who killed a 190-inch buck last season, couldn’t narrow down the score any more than that because of the craziness of the rack, which includes three drop tines and a third main beam.

“I truly don’t even know how to score a non-typical like this,” Sullivan said. “I tried to be conservative.”

The buck, which has 11 points and two main beams on the left side and 7 points on the right, can be officially scored after the rack dries 60 days. Former state Deer Study Leader Dave Moreland saw photos of the massive deer and told Louisiana Sportsman that there’s no doubt it will make the Pope & Young record books.

The current state record non-typical bow buck was killed by Vicki Husted in Tensas Parish in 2010 and measured 227 6/8 inches. But Husted’s deer, along with the No. 2 buck on the state’s all-time Big Game Records, was measured in velvet.

Louisiana Tough Buck

The state of Louisiana is known for some tough, gumbo-powered dudes that take on everything from alligators to hurricanes. Apparently the white-tailed deer found living within the state are no different, taking on anything that bites… from mosquitoes to reptiles to arrows and even vehicles.

The impressive nontypical buck shot by Sullivan has also experienced his share of tough times, too. Last year, the buck was shot by a hunter on a neighboring property. Done deal, right? Wrong.

Then Sullivan, from inside his own office,  observed the massive buck get struck by a passing vehicle. This would have cut short a great hunting story… but the buck shook it off, got up and ran off… and continued to live! I guess when living in the city you either get tough or die trying.

Giant Buck is OK

One of the best things about white-tailed deer hunting is that you never know when or where a big buck could show up. Case in point: a big nontypical whitetail buck that was recently discovered in Oklahoma — the kind of buck that would keep you awake at night if it showed up in your game camera photos.

Unfortunately, deer hunters in the area will not be able to claim this giant whitetail and there is no doubt that a number of hunters have photos of this great animal. You see, the buck actually lived in close proximity to a neighborhood in Edmond, Oklahoma.

Big Buck Down

The buck was found in late September, just prior to the Oklahoma deer season opener. Turns out the animal was road-killed, found along the side of the road. Big bummer for area hunters, especially since this mature buck sported a whopping 28 points. I don’t know about you, but from where I come from that is the stuff that dreams are made of.

According to local news outlets the whitetail buck measured 236 3/8 inches using the Boone & Crockett antler scoring system.

Oklahoma on The Map

The state of Oklahoma has produces good deer year-in and year-out. But the OK state is not alone. A number of state’s have seen improvement in the age structure of bucks, with yearling bucks comprising the lowest percentage of buck harvest in the nation just last year.

That bodes well for hunters this season, especially other states in the region such as Texas. With two back-to-back seasons of amazing rainfall, white-tailed deer hunters in Texas have something special to look forward to this hunting season.

Lots of Good Bucks

Not only are bucks in great shape right now, but there will more older bucks in the herd this fall. Good habitat conditions in Okalahoma and Texas last year made deer hunting tough. An abundance of natural food resulted in lower deer movements, less visits to food plots and deer feeders.

This phenomenon allowed a lot more bucks to reach an additional year of age. Maybe this resulted in even fewer yearling bucks being harvested? Hard to say for sure, but I know that I am excited for the season because all those survivors will have even more antler growth this year. With the deer hunting season underway, hopefully you are reading this from your stand!