CARL LINDQUIST - The York Dispatch
The Pennsylvania Game Commission, with the help of deer DNA testing,
has charged three men with the possession of illegal deer in southern
York County last year.
The men were allegedly out hunting in the Delta area before the
firearm season began last year. When Game Commission officers heard
shots, they responded and allegedly found the men on an ATV that was
carrying loaded rifles, according to the commission.
The men were wearing camouflage, and officers found nine baited tree
stands in the woods directly behind a nearby house, according to the
commission.
When questioned, the men denied shooting deer out of season,
according to Guy Hansen, a wildlife conservation officer for the Game
Commission.
Two of the men lived in the nearby house and another lived in
Maryland at the time, Hansen said. Since the incident, one of the men
who lived in the home has moved to Maryland and another moved to the
Fawn Grove area.
"They lied to us for quite some time," Hansen said. "It wasn't until
days later that we finally found exactly what was going on. We were met
with nothing but resistance on that initial evening."
The commission officers found one deer that was allegedly shot that
evening, Hansen said. They then searched a "butcher shop" inside the
home and found other deer parts, some of which appeared to have been
from recently killed deer. Some processed meat in a freezer was not yet
frozen, Hansen said.
Deer parts and samples of the meat were sent to the University of
Maine, which tested them for DNA. The testing found DNA from three more
deer, in addition to the full deer carcass and three skull caps found in
the "butcher shop," Hansen said.
Had the samples not been sent out for testing, the commission would
only have been able to charge the men with up to four counts of
possession of illegal deer -- one for the deer carcass and three counts
for the three skullcaps found in the home -- instead of seven, Hansen
said.
If found guilty, the men will be responsible for the cost of the DNA
testing. Charges in the incident were filed Tuesday against:
--- Robert O. Fewster, 29, of Fawn Grove, with one count of loaded
firearms on a moving vehicle and seven counts of possession of illegal
deer. Total fines could reach $7,300 if he is convicted.
--- James L. Fewster Sr., 49, of Baltimore, with one count of false
and fraudulent statements, one count of loaded firearms on a moving
vehicle and seven counts of possession of illegal deer. Total fines
could reach $7,600.
--- Ronald C. Wade, 55, of Halethorpe, Md., with one count of false
and fraudulent statements, one count of loaded firearms on a moving
vehicle and one count of possession of illegal deer. Total fines could
reach $1,600.
-- Reach Carl Lindquist at 505-5432 or
clindquist@yorkdispatch.com.
