Jail time, heavy fines handed down in poaching case

Each man could lose his hunting privileges

Panguitch — Two men have learned that it doesn't pay to poach in Utah.

Gary Lyndyl Harp, 35, and Gavin Smith, 19, both of Panguitch, pleaded guilty on May 28 in a case that involved the killing of 11 deer and two pronghorn. The men killed the animals in the Panguitch and Mount Dutton areas in south-central Utah in 2008 and 2009.

DWR conservation officers Fred Pannunzio (L) and Micah Evans show some of the confiscated antlers and the guns used to kill the animals.

Photo by Lynn Chamberlain

Both of the men were sentenced to six months in jail. They will also pay a combined total of $41,000 in restitution and fines. And they'll forfeit the three rifles they used to kill the animals.

It could also be a long time before either of the men hunts again.

Harp might have to wait 48 years before being allowed to hunt in the 31 states involved in the Interstate Wildlife Violator Compact.

Utah is one of those states.

Smith could lose his hunting privileges for the next 34 years.

Harp pleaded guilty to two felonies and four Class A misdemeanors. Smith pleaded guilty to one felony and four Class A misdemeanors.

Poaching hotline

Acting on a tip received on Utah's Turn-in-a-Poacher (UTiP) hotline, DWR and Garfield County Sherriff's officers served search warrants on a house and a shed near Panguitch over the Memorial Day weekend.

(You can access the hotline at 1-800-662-DEER [3337] or wildlife.utah.gov/law/poaching.php on the Web.)

Inside, they found the heads of eight mule deer bucks, one mule deer doe and two pronghorn bucks. Harp and Smith also confessed to killing another mule deer buck and a mule deer doe.

Garfield County Attorney Barry Huntington says he's satisfied with the way the case turned out. He also expressed gratitude to the DWR and Garfield County Sherriff's Office for the excellent work their officers did on the case.