Washington Man Gets Over 2 Years in Prison for Shooting Into Herd of Elk Out of Season

The 28-year-old Washington State man was having car trouble on the opening day of the 2022 modern firearm elk season when a Good Samaritan stopped to help. During the course of their conversation, Cox mentioned that the elk hunting “had been better the day before the season opener,” according to the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW).

Noticing the strangeness of that statement, the Good Samaritan contacted WDFW officers and provided a description of Cox and his vehicle. Turns out, Cox was already a known quantity to the Washington State game wardens. He’d been investigated earlier in the year for an unrelated report involving a different elk harvest, and officers identified him based on the Good Samaritan’s description.

Officers responded to the scene but weren’t able to locate Cox or his vehicle. But they spoke with other hunters in the area and asked that they report back if they came across the suspected poacher. A few hours later, they got a call that Cox’s vehicle had been found, and several officers arrived at the scene.

Cox wasn’t alone. He was with several other hunters, none of whom had permission to be on the property on which they were found.

“The group… provided an inconsistent story that didn’t conform to state law or hold up to questioning,” according to a WDFW press release.

It didn’t take long for the officers to get to the bottom of what had happened. Cox admitted to “shooting indiscriminately at an elk herd and retrieving a spike bull, which was illegal for the season.”

Cox and his crew recovered the spike bull’s head but left the meat to rot. They also shot a 4x4 bull elk, but they failed to recover that carcass as well and let it go to waste.

Cox was charged with one felony count of possession of a firearm, six gross misdemeanors for elk poaching and wastage of big game, and one misdemeanor for criminal trespassing. His especially heinous crimes landed him an especially severe sentence–at least, as most poaching crimes go. The Grays Harbor County man was sentenced to 29 months in state prison, a $4,000 fine, and a two-year suspension of his hunting privileges.

It could have been even worse for the would-be hunter. A spokesperson for the WDFW told MeatEater that Cox could have been charged with additional wildlife violations, such as the incident in which he shot a bull elk with a rifle and then stuffed an arrow in the wound to make it look in the picture like he shot it during archery season (as seen in the feature image). Unfortunately, the statute of limitations had expired before charges could be filed.

In this most recent incident, charges for one additional subject have been filed and are pending.

“Fish and Wildlife Officers worked closely with the Grays Harbor Prosecutor’s Office to reach a favorable outcome for the severity of the violations committed,” according to the WDFW.

In addition, the Department will seek a lifetime hunting suspension “based on the egregious nature of the crimes.”

Images via Washington State Fish and Wildlife Police.