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Crime AB - Serge Painchaud fined for shooting a black bear in Jasper NP; Aug 2022 (incident)

Twiglets

Diggin' It
Basically, a guy was hiking by himself in Jasper, got scared when he saw a black bear, and shot it. It's not legal to hunt in Canada's national parks.


Painchaud had gone hiking with two friends but got tired before his companions and turned back alone. While on his own, he saw a bear about 100 feet away and across a creek, according to the case’s agreed statement of facts obtained by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.

The hiker said he “became scared” and fired a warning shot into the air with the 20-gauge shotgun he had brought into the park. Firearms are not permitted in Canada’s national parks, a rule that Painchaud told the court he “honestly had no idea” existed.

After the warning shot, the bear took a few steps in Painchaud’s direction, at which point he shot and injured the animal. The wounded bear rolled down a creek bank and fled into the forest.

Justice Rosanna Saccomani said that the fear Painchaud said he felt upon seeing the bear was irrelevant to the case.

″[That] would apply to pretty much every single person in your situation,” she said, per the CBC. “We’re all afraid of bears.”
 

I Am A Rock

Diggin' It
Love this:

Justice Rosanna Saccomani said that the fear Painchaud said he felt upon seeing the bear was irrelevant to the case.

″[That] would apply to pretty much every single person in your situation,” she said, per the CBC. “We’re all afraid of bears.”


We finally have been getting a few judges who are making relevant pronouncements and imposing significant fines. IIRC this guy got a heftier fine than the dude at Buffalo National River who took 30 people on a closed trail, and one fell fatally off a cliff. The dude had done almost the same thing (though non-fatal) in the same location the week before, and been told to STOP by a ranger.

Ah, here:

A mere $600 fine on that one, but I hope he gets sued civilly.
 
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