Chase Cominsky—one of many two anglers discovered responsible of placing lead weights in walleye within the notorious Lake Erie Walleye Scandal—is at present going through a number of wildlife violation expenses.
A Pennsylvania Sport Warden assigned to Mercer County filed eight expenses in opposition to Cominsky, alleging that between 2013 and 2021, he harvested a number of whitetail deer out of season and and not using a legitimate license. These expenses embody the illegal killing or taking of huge sport, illegal taking or possession of sport or wildlife, illegal acts regarding licenses, failure to connect a tag to massive sport, and lending a kill tag.
The 36-year-old hasn’t been capable of hunt legally since 2008 due to earlier violations. So when the Pennsylvania Sport Fee received a tip that Cominsky had taken a number of antlered deer between 2013 and 2021 after authorized taking pictures hours or throughout a closed season, they needed to examine the scenario.
The sport warden discovered 5 antlered whitetail mounts in Cominsky’s front room—all mounted between 2013 and 2021. Three of the 5 trophy whitetails have been illegally tagged below his spouse’s identify.
Based on WMFJ Information, Cominsky’s spouse informed sport officers she by no means killed a deer however claimed her husband had shot the mounted deer with a gun or crossbow.
Cominsky can be awaiting trial in Mercer County Widespread Pleas Courtroom in a separate case involving expenses of conspiracy to commit forgery and theft by deception—he allegedly gave his son counterfeit $100 payments to spend in a neighborhood bowling alley. The 18-year-old has already been positioned on probation for one 12 months after pleading responsible to theft by deception.
After the walleye event introduced public disgrace, a jail sentence, and forfeiting a $130,000 boat and fishing privileges, you’d suppose he would possibly rethink his path in life. However that’s not precisely how the minds of “lifetime poachers” work.
Sam Lawry, a retired Arizona Sport and Fish Division officer informed MeatEater that he separates poachers into two classes: lifetime poachers and opportunistic poachers. “The lifetime poacher you’re not going to alter,” he stated. “[A license suspension] didn’t have an effect on them in any respect. They’d simply be extra cautious.”
So how can we cease “lifetime poachers” like Cominksy? The most effective hope is that he’s sentenced justly via the due strategy of the regulation. He’s scheduled for arraignment on November 14 in Mercer County Courtroom.
