Hunter facing charges after death of beloved elk named Bullwinkle

[DaveMonti]

We are talking about a trophy bull elk being POACHED by a guy that spends a lot of money each year at auctions and in the raffle.
And has a history of flaunting hunting regulations.

Fixed it for you

The amount of money he spends on raffles and auctions should have no more bearing on this case then how much he spends on underwear.....

Shooting a 2 point in a 3 point or better GMU
or
Shooting a trophy branched antler bull in a closed GMU

both = poaching

Why are you trying to diminish what he is accused of?

We need a sarcasm emoji. 

I got it Rick, but not everyone has met you!

[popeshawnpaul]

Innocent until proven guilty only applies for those who have lots of money. Otherwise, you would expect, like most anyone else, the rifle used to kill the bull would have been confiscated, the bull itself would have been taken, perhaps even the vehicle Reichert used when he was "hunting" this bull would have been taken. You hear about property being confiscated all the time in poaching cases. Funny how that didn't happen in this case.

They confiscated the bull at his court appearance yesterday.  Not sure about the weapon or any other property.

Surprised they didn't execute a search warrant on it sooner.  It's usually one of the first things they do.  If the continuance/diversion agreement is conditional upon forfeiture of the bull, that would be the only reason I could see why they would not accept the agreement.  The next scheduling conference is Sept. 27 with possible motions October 13.  The defense waived speedy trial through December and set a tentative trial for December.  Getting further along here.

As for the people with $ vs those without...I can see a disparity at times in court.  However, I also see it go the other way with the experienced public defender getting better deal than clueless private attorneys.  Selecting an attorney is like selecting a burger.  You can get good cheap ones, good expensive ones, bad cheap ones, and bad expensive ones.  3 of the 5 best trial attorneys I know are public defense attorneys...

[Jpmiller]

I wonder when the picture of this year's monster elk will be showing up in here. Hopefully it at least doesn't have ellensburg in the background 

[Bob33]

No decision was made on whether to join the trials of Tod Reichert and David Perkins on Tuesday in Kittitas County Lower District Court, pushing back the trial date to Dec. 2.

Reichert, 76, is charged with second-degree unlawful hunting of big game, a gross misdemeanor, which can carry the possibility of fines and a two-year suspension of his hunting privileges. He has pleaded not guilty. The Salkum man is accused of shooting a well-known local elk called Bullwinkle in an area closed to hunting branch-antler elk.

Reichert’s companion hunter and key witness, local hunting guide David Perkins, faces charges of second-degree aiding and abetting, or as a principal, to unlawful hunting. Reichert is considered a disabled hunter and is allowed to have a companion hunter.

Yakima-based attorney Ken Therrien, representing Perkins, said he needed more time to go over discovery materials before deciding on whether to join the trials.

The state also has the option to object to the joinder.

With a later court date, Reichert could potentially use elk tags with special privileges purchased at an auction earlier this year. Reichert was originally subject to a hunting ban imposed by Kittitas County District Court Judge Jim Hurson earlier this year, although the ban was lifted at a July 27 court date.

The Spokesman-Review reported that Reichert bid $75,000 for the 2016 Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife’s special eastside elk auction tag.

Bullwinkle the elk was well known in the Fairview District near Ellensburg, and was known to wander around hay fields and yards.

The court has set the trial date for Perkins and Reichert on Dec. 2. A pre-trial hearing is scheduled for Oct. 13 when a decision on a joinder is expected.

http://www.dailyrecordnews.com/news/bullwinkle-trial-pushed-to-dec/article_16a9bee5-2f01-51d8-a506-ca12397e167b.html

[DaveMonti]

This typical cluster will still be pending a year from now when the charged party is hunting on next year's tags.  Just keep delaying the trial date, filing this and that and costing money.  Someone should set up a pool as to when the trial actually occurs. 

[popeshawnpaul]

This typical cluster will still be pending a year from now when the charged party is hunting on next year's tags.  Just keep delaying the trial date, filing this and that and costing money.  Someone should set up a pool as to when the trial actually occurs.

Not going to happen.  It doesn't work that way in most scenarios.  The prosecutors get paid salary whether they work this case or not.  The court has this calendar whether this case was filed or not. 

On another note, as a defendant you usually don't want your case joined as it can prejudice a jury against your client.  In this case, it's possible you want them joined so if the jury tried to "mitigate" the situation by finding the more culpable person guilty of something (Perkins?) they might be willing to let someone walk.  It will be interesting to explore this thought as the case proceeds.

[Alchase]

They testify against each other if they are joined can they?

If not, that seems to be in their favor to join?

[jmscon]

Think he has filled his tag yet?

[coachcw]

I know the Sheep went down , not sure on the elk or deer . playing out perfect for him by dec he will be tagged out . maybe ironed out before he loads the pot for next years raffle .

[jdb]

Any idea where he killed the sheep coach? I ran into him twice on the yakima river and he passed on two pretty good rams that day.

[jackelope]

Pennsylvania bull is dead I heard.

[JDHasty]

Any idea where he killed the sheep coach? I ran into him twice on the yakima river and he passed on two pretty good rams that day.

Eaton Ranch

[PlateauNDN]

Lies, if there were dead animals out there with him straddling them the pics would be posted here and since I don't see pics it's lies.

[Tbar]

Any idea where he killed the sheep coach? I ran into him twice on the yakima river and he passed on two pretty good rams that day.

Eaton Ranch

You sure about that?   

[JDHasty]

Any idea where he killed the sheep coach? I ran into him twice on the yakima river and he passed on two pretty good rams that day.

Eaton Ranch

You sure about that?   

I heard it from about eight different independent sources, so no I am not 100% certain of that, but that is what I have heard.