Life in prison for caribou poachers

Commentary by Mac Olsen

The perpetrator(s) who shot three caribou 70 km north of Slave Lake Feb. 8 should be sentenced to life in prison with no possibility of parole for their criminal act.

Moreover, it is everybody’s responsibility to report acts of poaching. If others with knowledge of such acts choose to ignore it, then they are as guilty as the poachers.

Could you live with yourself, knowing you could have brought the perpetrator(s) to justice? The “I don’t care” attitude is unconscionable, especially because the caribou is a threatened species and protected by provincial legislation.

The caribou face the challenge of survival from predators like wolves; their numbers should not be decimated further by callous actions from humans.

“It’s sad because the caribou has a hard enough time to begin with and our department lists them as a threatened species,” says Wade Horton, the district officer for the District of Slave Lake.

“It’s certainly afforded some extra protection through our legislation. We try and keep those populations healthy, but they’re up against some tough times.”

Sadly, despite interviewing many people and having good physical evidence, Alberta Fish and Wildlife has no leads in the case, so Horton is requesting the public’s help.

Horton declined to disclose the nature of the evidence, but he says the caribou were shot on an oil lease road 100 yards off Highway 88.

Horton also says if the perpetrator(s) was/were hunting under subsistence rights, then they will face wastage charges because they left the animals behind. If it is someone who does not have the right to harvest caribou, then they will face charges for hunting during a closed season and wastage.

However, I would go further and make the perpetrator(s) serve life in prison without the possibility of parole and do hard labour as well. If they choose to commit such a malicious and heinous crime, then they should be made to serve the rest of their natural lives behind bars.

It would put potential and current poachers on notice – their crimes will not go unpunished. Some people may not think about the consequences and do it anyway, but at least the threat of life imprisonment would be a strong deterrence for the rest. For me, there is no compromise on this issue.

Not only is poaching malicious and heinous, legitimate hunters could face a public backlash for something they did not perpetrate.

“Everybody, when they see something shot like this, they look at hunters,” says Horton. “Well, no, it’s not hunters that did this. These are criminals that did this and they really don’t belong to the hunting fraternity. The hunters that do it right and harvest their meat … those are respected people,” says Horton.

As someone who is just getting into recreational hunting, I do not want myself and all other legitimate hunters confronting public hostility. Nor do I want extremist environmental groups and animal rights activists to hold sway over public opinion and successfully lobby for the elimination of hunting.

So, if anyone has information about the poaching case or any others, please call any of the district offices in High Prairie, Red Earth or Slave Lake, or the Report a Poacher hotline at 1-800-642-3800.

The caribou and other threatened animals need protection from poachers, so it is up to us to stop them.