The 22-year-old additionally forfeited firearms, owes hundreds in restitution, and can serve jailtime
Stamey poached 20 deer from a street in 2020 alone. Then he threatened a landowner with a gun. {Photograph} by the Tennessee Wildlife Assets Company
In August, William Stamey Jr. of Whitesburg, Tennessee, pointed a gun at a landowner who caught him and an confederate spotlighting and taking pictures deer on McKinney Chapel Street in Rogersville. Now, after pleading responsible in Hawkins County Circuit Court docket to aggravated assault and a number of massive recreation poaching prices on Friday, Stamey will spend six months behind bars, the Tennessee Wildlife Assets Company announced Wednesday. The 22-year-old was sentenced to 3 six-month sentences however will serve them concurrently. On high of a lifetime searching ban, Stamey may even fork over two weapons, 14 mounts, venison, turkey elements, and $12,500 in restitution.
Particulars surrounding the Aug. 16 spotlighting incident are restricted, but it surely led to proof of a persistent poaching profession. After Stamey threatened to kill the landowner (who stays nameless), a Hawkins County sheriff’s deputy stopped Stamey, his confederate, and a 3rd occupant (each stay each stay unidentified, have been charged, and await March court docket dates). The deputy discovered the highlight and searching rifles within the automobile.
The Hawkins County Sheriff’s Workplace handed the case over to TWRA. When wildlife officer Justin Pinkston arrived at Stamey’s residence to serve a prison summons on Sept. 15, he discovered a buck carcass in Stamey’s yard. Inspection revealed that Stamey had checked the buck in as an archery harvest regardless of not having an archery license. Whereas executing a search warrant on Stamey’s property 4 days later, TWRA officers found 11 units of antlers from poached deer. Stamey additionally admitted to poaching a bearded hen turkey in 2022 and never checking it in with TWRA.
Stamey’s historical past of recreation legislation violations was established prior. He was convicted of poaching in Could 2021 after coming into a plea settlement for searching throughout a closed season, spotlighting, and searching from a public roadway in Greene County in November 2020.
“Over a three-and-a-half-year interval, Stamey was charged with killing or aiding in killing 15 deer illegally, and admitted to poaching 20 deer from the street in 2020 alone,” Pinkston stated within the TWRA press launch. “Sadly, most of those deer had been left mendacity and had been by no means recovered.”
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Commenters on TWRA’s Fb publish principally applauded the punishment that Stamey obtained — a departure from what are usually essential feedback complaining about overly lax punishment for poachers. Many typically name for jail time and extra critical fines. However this time, of us had been supportive.
“Good job,” one commenter wrote. “Glad to see somebody lastly serve a while and get respectable fines[.]”
One other commenter did have one critique.
“Too dangerous the sentences run concurrently.”
