Small Town News

Vorhies gets nearly one year for past poaching incidents

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After changing his plea to three counts of Game and Fish violations and entering a guilty plea on a fourth count, former Greybull resident Gary Vorhies, 47, was sentenced to four years in the Big Horn County Jail with just over three years suspended.

Vorhies appeared in Fifth Judicial Circuit Court before Judge Thomas Harrington Saturday morning to change his pleas on three charges. Vorhies had his initial appearance Aug. 5 on charges of wanton destruction of a big-game animal, conspiracy to take an antlered deer without a license and taking an antlered deer without a license.

At the hearing, Wyoming Game Warden Bill Robertson served Vorhies with a fourth citation, an additional count of taking an antlered deer without a license.

Vorhies, who had written two letters to Judge Harrington requesting a change of plea hearing, said he was frustrated with his inability to contact his defense attorney and wanted to get the case over with. Harrington said the letters were received Sept. 9 and since he would be out of town on Monday, regular court day in Basin, the hearing was being held Saturday. Vorhies changed his plea to the initial three counts, stemming from incidents in 1999 and 2000, to no contest and initially entered a no contest plea to the fourth count. Big Horn County Deputy Attorney Jim Hallman said the state would accept no contest pleas for the first three counts but not the iourA'.* Vorhies'- then' agreed to plead guilty * to, the fourth count, which stemmed from an incident on Nov. 24, 2000. In pronouncing sentencing, Harrington said he did not feel probation was appropriate in this case. When evaluating if incarceration is appropriate for a case, he said there are four factors. The first two, public safety and rehabilitation, did not apply, he said. The latter two -- deterrent effect to deter others from like behavior, and punishment -- were valid reasons for this case. He said in the counties that "this court sits on" hunting, fishing and the outdoor life are sacred and valued by most citizens.

"I would have been ! thrilled to see that palmated ! deer," Harrington said, add-! ing that Game and Fish violations will be taken serious-I ly in his court.

He said that he does be-j lieve Vorhies is sincere when j he testified that he had made ! a change in his life after his '. year incarceration in Park I County for poaching two big-', horn sheep in 2000. However, ! his past poaching record, in-' eluding the 1992 poaching of ' the Growler elk, does have ! bearing on the sentencing.

Harrington also expressed ! some frustration with the

* sentencing that the law allowed. "These are misdemeanors. You can steal a $1,000 worth of tires or damage $3,000 worth of tires and it's a felony. This behavior (in his opinion) is far more egregious but it's not the law," he said.

SENTENCINGS

The sentencings for each count are as follows:

Count I. According to Robertson in providing factual basis, said Vorhies, during an interview with Game and Fish Investigator Scott Adell in 2005, admitted to taking a 5x5 whitetail deer buck without the proper license and leaving it to waste, taking only the antlers. He said photos of Vorhies with the deer were found in a photo album belonging to Vorhies that was confiscated during a search warrant on a different case.

Vorhies was fined $2,000, the maximum allowed under the statute, sentenced to one year in the Big Horn County Jail with credit for 54 days already served since his arrest in Colorado July 21 and with 270 days suspended. He was also ordered to pay $2,500 in restitution to the Wyoming Game and Fish.

Count II. Robertson testified that Vorhies aided and abetted another gentleman in the illegal taking of a 4x4 whitetail buck deer. He said the two had been hunting the previous day and a smaller buck had been shot but was never tagged. On Nov. 23, 2000, the 4x4 buck was shot.

He was ordered to pay the $2,500 restitution, fined the minimum $5,000 as allowed by statute, and sentenced to one year in the county jail with 180 days suspended.

Count III. Vorhies was charged with taking a game animal, a whitetail buck with a broken tine, without a license and while his hunting privileges were suspended.

Vorhies was again ordered to pay $2,500 restitution and the minimum $5,000 fine. He was sentenced to one year in the county jail with 270 days suspended.

Count IV. Robertson testified that on the evening of Nov. 24, 2000, Vorhies and three others (which Vorhies named during the hearing) drove out to a ranch on Greybull River Road and killed a palmated deer. Vorhies said he shot the deer with a .333 rifle. They drove out near the cemetery to gut the deer and then took it to Vorhies' garage to process. He said he had the head mounted, but when he heard there was an investigation into the shooting he destroyed the mount, cutting the antlers into pieces and throwing them into the Tongue River. He said the rest of the mount was thrown away in a Dumpster near the Sheridan McDonald's.

Under cross-examination he testified that the tag placed on the deer was that of Carl Emmett of Greybull, who was not one of the four men hunting that night. When Hallman began asking about Vorhies' brother's involvement, Harrington said the questions were "way far off of the factual basis" needed for the court hearing.

Vorhies was assessed the $2,500 restitution and $5,000 minimum fine and sentenced to one year in the county jail, all of which was suspended.

Vorhies will be placed on four years supervised probation upon his release from the Big Horn County Jail. Harrington said at this time he was not limiting Vorhies to staying in Wyoming, with Vorhies expressing a desire to return to Colorado where he has lived since 2005. However, he said he did not know if Colorado would accept probation transfer on misdemeanor charges. Hallman will check into the probation question and another hearing will be scheduled if the probation conditions need to be changed.

Harrington placed standard probation conditions on Vorhies. In addition Vorhies must not have in his possession any hunting, fishing or trapping equipment including firearms, bows, knives, saws, scopes, binoculars and traps. He must not work, nor have anything to do with anything related to hunting, trapping or fishing. He is not to collect any antlers or any sheds in Wyoming.

Vorhies' hunting privileges had already been revoked for 50 years by Park County with the bighorn sheep poaching case. Vorhies has paid all of his fines from the Park County case according to Park County circuit court officials.

In Wyoming, Harrington said Vorhies is not to be on any game reserve, national forest, national park, state park or any public land where wildlife is present.

VORHIES COMMENTS

During the sentencing portion of Saturday's hearing, Vorhies said he was not aware until his arrest in July that there was an outstanding warrant for the game violations. He said he had been stopped twice in Colorado and once in Nebraska for traffic violations and no notice was given of any outstanding warrants.

He said he has been cooperative since his arrest and did not fight extradition. He admitted that in 2000 he was part of the high profile bighorn sheep poaching case in Cody. "There's some misconception as to why," he said.

Vorhies said in 1999 and 2000 he took care of his mother who was battling cancer and who later died of carreer. "I had never dealt with losing someone so close. I didn't know how to deal with the grief," Vorhies said.

He said he reached for the one thing that gave him pleasure - hunting. "I've always had a passion for hunting. I needed to do something that I used to do to feel normal. It's not an excuse but I did things to keep from putting a bullet in my own head."

He said he dealt with the depression while in jail in Park County, including taking medication for a time.

Since his release from Park County jail, Vorhies said he has been a law abiding citizen except for some traffic violations and has started a business in Highlands Ranch, Colo., building custom arenas.

"I'm very sincere about making this right with everybody," Vorhies said.

Robertson said he wanted to believe Vorhies had changed his attitude toward wild game but said he had a long history of game violations starting in 1992.

Hallman told Harrington, "This is a unique case. There are four misdemeanor charges that are considered high misdemeanors based on the fine potential."

He said the case also represents the loss to the people of the state of Wyoming and the tourists and out-of-state hunters.

"Wildlife is one of our most precious resources," Hallman said, adding that probation and hunting privilege suspension has had little or no effect on Vorhies.

"The state is asking for sanctions severe enough to get his attention," Hallman said.



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© 2009 Greybull Standard Greybull, Wyoming. All Rights Reserved. This content, including derivations, may not be stored or distributed in any manner, disseminated, published, broadcast, rewritten or reproduced without express, written consent from DAS.

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