Two Saratoga men cited for the out-of-season killing of a deer face a settlement hearing later this month, according to the Carbon County Circuit Court Clerk’s Office.
A Wyoming Game and Fish Department Warden ticketed Thomas Arthur of Saratoga with intentionally taking an antlered big game animal during a closed season on Sept. 22, according to a copy of the citation provided to Cowboy State Daily by the court clerk’s office.
Joseph Johnston, also of Saratoga, was cited the same day with being an accessory after the fact to the same violation.
That violation is a misdemeanor under Wyoming statute, punishable by a fine of $5,000 to $10,000, up to a year in prison or both.
Out-Of-Court Settlement
The citations were filed by Game and Fish in Carbon County Circuit Court. No affidavits or other changing documents were available, according to the clerk’s office.
A settlement hearing for the case is set for Nov. 29 between prosecutors and attorneys for Arthur and Johnston, according to the clerk’s office.
Calls to the defendants’ attorneys were not returned Monday.
No further information was available from Game and Fish, agency spokeswoman Nish Goicolea told Cowboy State Daily.
“We usually don’t discuss or disclose any additional information related to citations or cases,” she said.
The Saratoga region falls under the jurisdiction of the Game and Fish’s Laramie regional office. Wardens in that region were busy in 2021, according to the agency’s law enforcement summary report – the latest one available.
Wardens there documented 577 hunting- and fishing-related violations, issued 156 citations and 396 warning. Also during 2021 they investigated 24 alleged violations that didn’t result in suspects being identified or charges filed, according to the report.
