Long time poacher busted in CO

[Big Sky]

It's a sure bet that this thread and the threads over at MM would be a whole lot shorter if everyone had all the skeletons in their closets suddenly exposed. Jeff is a good man that made very bad choices in regards to hunting. It doesn't change the fact that he's a great guy on a whole bunch of other levels not related to hunting. Nor does it change the fact that what he did was wrong. He knows it and he's going through the process of paying for it. There isn't much else he can do. The thing I find most sad in all this is the abusive and degrading way so many people act in regards to this, especially on the MM site.

 

[BigHornRam]

From what I've read here, the punishment does not seem excessive. Stiff penelties will stop some with questionable ethics from acting on them. If we are not willing to clean up our sport from within, the sport of hunting's days are numbered.

 

[AkBearHunter]

It's one thing if he had made a mistake and poached once and got caught but this happened over a period of 7 years, sounds like it wasn't a mistake and he knew what he was doing. I'm not accusing him of being a bad person, only of being a bad hunter. He's paying the price now and it's time to move on...

 

[BuzzH]

BHR,

Thats one of the best replies I've seen on this thread, and one of your best for sure.

I've thought about this case for a long time and read the replies here and at MM.

Its really odd that there are threads nearly every day, surely every week, where hunters blame all sorts of things for not having good hunting and more opportunity. I mean wolves, coyotes, cats, WEALTH TAGS (for you Schmalts), outfitters, landowners locking people out, poor management from the wildlife agencies, season structures screwed up, poor habitat, I mean literally a constant barrage of excuses.

Yet, some of the very people that bitch constantly about that stuff seem to be in denial about a pile of shit poacher like DK. I dont care how "nice" of a guy he is, he flat stole big-game from everyone. All the hard work that goes into correct management, all the predator control, all the rules, all the laws, all the money spent for buying habitat, all the money spent to enhance habitat...he flat crapped on a lot of effort, time, money and caring/legal sportsmen. He did it for his own gratification, his own ego, and even worse for personal profit.

Even just a small handful of unethical poachers like that can literally crush years and years worth of hunter opportunity.

Guys like him put little or no value on wildlife...its just there to serve their needs.

One thing I think about every single time I kill an animal is to try to understand how that animal came to be. A trophy quality animal like mule deer and elk live a pretty damn tough life. They have to live at least 6-10 years to become a truly trophy class animal. I think about how they've survived that long living in the environment they do. They have to avoid predators, have to avoid hunters, and they have to survive weather that people dont even like to walk around the block in. Then you have to have good genetics, secure habitat, quality habitat. Its pretty amazing to me that any make it.

When I'm out there hunting, I think about that stuff alot...and to be honest, I always have felt a little bit of remorse for killing even a doe antelope...let alone a trophy quality animal thats slipped through the cracks for 6+ years.

Then you have guys like DK, who I assure you, did not think about any of that type of stuff very often. He was only worried about supplying the next article to some magazine, maintaining an image to peddle his scouting business, and to plaster another set of antlers on the wall.

This type of behavior is incredibly damaging to wildlife populations...in particular trophy quality animals. Wildlife gets very few breaks and the last thing they need is poaching pressure. They surely deserve better than to be poached by some numbnut who shows a complete lack of respect by leaving them to rot in the field.

Totally unacceptable on every level...and for that...Jeff Coldwell can enjoy the view he's earning from under the bus. Nothing more than a common thief and a liar...I dont tolerate either and he's not a nice guy. He got off light if you ask me.

 

[MarvB]

I was going to start this post by quoting a bit of what Buzz said that I agreed with…then after reading Buzz’s statement again, I realized I’d have to quote his entire post. I don’t know Jeff (Deerking) personally, have just emailed him a few times and, like many, have enjoyed some of his posts and interaction on this board with the HTalk regulars. That being said, there is little remorse I feel for the man when it comes to what penalties he must now face for his action. I just plain don’t condone poaching and poaching with a motive of profit sickens me. What the man did was drop dead wrong and, as Buzz remarked, could have effects that far outlast his “sentence” in the number of years that good genetics were (unlawfully) taken out of the pool.

There are places around here (yeah, even in Cali) that huge bucks come down to winter and would be sitting ducks for a poacher. I can only hope for the chance to meet up with one of them, should I draw the proper tag, during the season and will take every opportunity to admire them in the mean time. The thought of illegally upping ones odds just to get one on the wall should never even cross the mind of a true hunter.

Well said Buzz.

 

[Big Sky]

BuzzH, I agree with most of what you say except when you cross the line and start attacking the person. In no way am I condoning Jeff's actions. He was wrong, point blank and period. Does this make him a worthless person? No, not by a long shot. Does he lose complete credibility as a hunter? I'd say he does. Do I consider him a friend? I sure do, but Jeff and I have enough other interests other than hunting that I'm not going to write off a friendship over something hunting related or even poaching related. I turned in a friend years ago for poaching and I'll tell you write now it was the worst thing I could've have done. It wasn't worth it and while that person's behavior was wrong I should've tried another way to deal with it. Wildlife is wildlife, nothing more, nothing less, true friendships cannot have a true value put on them. BuzzH, you will find as you go through life that there will be a lot of people you admire that will really disappoint you. Especially as it relates to hunting. Your hard line views may change with time...I'd like to see your views after you have raised a teenager or two.

 

[BuzzH]

Bigsky,

Is it my freaking fault he poached? Your fault he poached? Trophy Hunter magazines fault? Who made the decision and who pulled the trigger? Is it the deers fault? He deserves to be drug through the mud he created. If some harsh words are said, tough shit. He could have avoided the whole situation by keeping his poaching finger off the trigger.

I dont admire people. I never fell into the greatness of DK. Matter of fact, I had my doubts about him when he posted a picture of JUST a set of horns on his pack and near a tent and said he "forgot" his camera and had no photos of the entire animal. Not even a head with a cape attached. Oak and I talked about that...and we both thought it was "odd".

Lets see here, a guy that is a photographer, posts numerous photos on hunting board, magazines, etc....just happened to not have a camera the day he killed a buck at the kill site...but had one at camp? He wouldnt hike back to get a camera? Turned out my "hunch" was right.

I'll tell you what really sucks is that guys like him cast a shadow of doubt on the hunters that do things right and legally take good animals each year...or even average animals each year. Because of other people like HIM, is the exact reason I smelled a rat when he posted those pictures. Thats just sad, but thats what illegal hunting has done to the sport.

I tell you what, as much as I like my best friend, if I found out he was poaching like Jeff did...I'd burn him down in two seconds flat. I hope he'd burn my ass down for it as well.

I realize that there certainly are extents to wildlife violations...but this is the exact kind of poachers that the wildlife absolutely do not need, and in my opinion the baddest of the bad.

Theres very few ways to deal with cronic poachers...matter of fact, theres only one way to deal with them.

Hunting is important to me and the guys I hunt with...but whats more important to me and my best friends is how we conduct ourselves in the field.

Being a good sportsmen is being a good person. If Coldwell is willing to cheat, lie, and break the law over a few sets of deer antlers...what would ever compell me to believe the guy is honest at anything else he does?

His word isnt worth a squirt of piss in my book...I dont care what the subject.

As far as teenagers go...I expect them to make mistakes and learn from it...a 43 year old man should already know better. He made the decision a long, long, time ago to be a crooked bastard. Now he can pay the piper for it.

Oh, and I'd have NO problem telling him what I thought about him and his poaching to his face.

 

[MarvB]

Troy- What I’m addressing here, though probably not well, is the act itself and that the guy should pay dearly for it. Poaching flies in the face of all of us (hunters) directly or indirectly in the public eye. I’m not saying that Jeff probably is a good/great friend to some and would likely give you the shirt off his back but I feel that what he did does not have any justification in my eyes and never will. I’m sure he’ll be somewhat the same guy to those he’s befriended before but, in regards to hunting, I don’t think he should get a pass just because he is this “good guy”.

People do and will make mistakes…ALL of us. Many are for reasons most of us will never understand. Would Jeff’s business have done well without him poaching? Very likely, if his clients success bore the fruit of his efforts. Did him killing huge bucks out of season help it? Maybe/maybe not…if I was to “hire” someone as a scout to an area I’m wanting to hunt and that guy shows me pics/video of large bucks he’s patterned in that area I’d be drooling at the corners of my mouth. I don’t think I’d need to see the mounts hanging on his wall of those he’d already taken to garner my attention. After all, it’s not like I could hunt them again!

I’ll give you a (somewhat) similar situation I just recently went through. A guy I know and will call a friend more so than an acquaintance just got tapped for a DUI and vehicular negligence for running into a young girl while drunk. I’ve know the guy for four+ years, have had him to my home for dinner, and (our daughters are best friends) and have always though he was a great guy- well spoken, successful, caring, family man, etc. When he was arrested I found out that he had three prior DUI’s, (I’d never seen the man drunk), and was driving with a suspended license. This “good guy” had a side I didn’t know about, drove my daughter around without a license, was a closet alcoholic, and ended up doing great bodily harm to another driver that very well could have been someone in MY family. He is now at the county jail doing a mandatory 18+ months and will likely loose a great deal of everything he has worked for in life.

Where am I going with this? The fact that someone is a good dude, you share common interests, and that he’d be there for ya if you needed him does not by any means tell you if there is another side you don’t know about. You mentioned that in life that there will be a lot of people you admire that will really disappoint you. Unlike Buzz' I do admire certain people- mostly for their moral fiber not so much their abilities and I heartily agree with you and have just shown you a case in point. The problem I have with it is that though it may be only “a hunting or poaching related” incident- what else does he choose to show or not show to his friends? I’m not calling Jeff any names (he’s gonna serve his dues and will likely take it like a man and move on) but I do wave the internal red flag when someone can look me in the eye and pretend.

I could not knowing share a hunt camp with someone like that after this came out in as much as I wouldn’t drink a beer with the gentleman I have just mentioned. It’ not that my morals are so high and mighty but I wouldn’t put myself or that friend into a situation where they have already proven that their judgment is tainted. It may be somewhat a hard line, but I do have three kids and sometimes unfortunate things like this can be a great example to them in life. We all have our own opinions and I'm over expounding on mine!

 

[Big Sky]

MarvB, I completely agree with you and the way you put it. I won't write Jeff off as a friend and I'm not asking that he gets any kind of pass. I don't like what he did and wish he hadn't, but I can't change history. What I don't like is the tendency for some people to attack the person rather than the act. Like I said before if everyone's closet were suddenly thrown open and all the secret skeletons fell out I'd be willing to bet there would be a whole lot of surprises and some changes of attitude.

BuzzH, I've followed your posts long enough to know better than to try and get in a long drawn out pissing match with you. Besides for the most part we agree, I've stated what I don't agree with and all the talk in the world won't change either of our minds. I respect your opinion and like your personal ethics. I wish you the best and hope you never lose a good friend or family relationship to anything hunting related.

 

[BuzzH]

MarvB,

Let me explain the "not admiring" people.

I have a lot of respect...lots of respect for certain people. Like you said, the moral fiber is what I look at. But theres a big difference, at least to me, between having respect for people and admiring them. Admiring someone for their hunting abilities is pretty damn lame.

Bigsky,

Its your decision to trust or not trust whomever you like. I give everyone the benefit of the doubt until I'm proven wrong...Coldwell can not be trusted...at least not ever trusted by me...and certainly not around any western state with wildlife.

 

[Big Sky]

BuzzH, perhaps "admire" was the wrong word, "respect" may have been a better word to use. Either way, people you really wish wouldn't, will greatly disappoint you sooner or later. Only you can decide how that affects the friendship or relationship. We are all just products of our experiences. Mine are obviously different from yours.

 

[MarvB]

But theres a big difference, at least to me, between having respect for people and admiring them.

Agreed (damn Buzz, that's twice today ) As a youth I repected a lot of people...admired a few less however!

Admiring someone for their hunting abilities is pretty damn lame.

Also agreed...I feel this bar is one you set yourself and, in the grand scheme of life, the bars a pretty thin one.

Troy

We are all just products of our experiences

Dang straight, products of them and our reactions to them!

 

[Delw]

As far as teenagers go...I expect them to make mistakes and learn from it...a 43 year old man should already know better.

buzz I pretty much agree with everything you said except the quoted part above.
it should have read
As far as teenagers go...I expect them to make mistakes and learn from it...a 43 year old man, in the spot light of big animals and in the spot light of trophy hunters and magazines KNOWS better.

it would be one thing if the guys was some dumb ass red neck who never hunted or didn't even have a hunting licence, But DK has alot of supporters that look up to him, they put him on a pedastool so to speak. in a sence he was the Image for big mule deer. He knew better you know he did, if he didn't he was an absolute idiot, blaming it on pressure or fame or temptation is just an excuess cause he got caught.
No one takes wants to take the blame for anything anymore, they always have to blame it on something else, pretty sad the way people put off the blame on something anymore. you will see very few people in your life time that will ever say Hey I screwed up, with out the excuess that oh it was big, I was having a bad day, I was under alot of pressure etc.

the way I read some of these posts is the hunting comunity is no better than the freaks that have heros at the NFL and NBA level. These guys in the spotlight can do anything they want and still get away with it.

Hero woreship gotta love it.

 

[schmalts]

Buzz, I agree with everything you said to a tee so please dont get me wrong if you think that I feel what he did is forgivable for everyone. At this point I could care less if everyone hates him or not, it's more of me caring about why some do not understand why I am not joining them in the hatred. I think some of you are taking some of the things typed here in a way not meant to have come across, and are not seperating the acts, from the future i guess you can say. What Jeff did was a discusting act of waste and greed. I flat out do not tolerate it if it is knowingly going on. I was bothered mostly by the waste part.
However, if for one second I feel that Jeff has not learned his lesson from this, or if he shows me he hasn't done a complete 180 turn on his outlook of why we all hunt, and ever once copped an attitude that made me think that he didnt have this coming, or if he ever once made me think that he was not at fault in any way, I would tell him to take a hike.
I guess the best reason i think I will not throw him to the dogs as of yet is that I was not a perfect kid in my youngster years as My Father was a POS role model for me with a redneck hunting mentality. I never did anything to the level that Jeff did when i was a kid, but I cannot cast the first stone because I broke some laws as a teenager. Yes Jeff is not a teenager, and that is something that some will say matters too.
He will pay the price for his actions. I do not feel that his punishment is excessive, or overexcessive, and never have said that on MM or here. What i did say was that It seemed that he didnt get a break for cooperation, and that was just an observation and not a opinion on the severity of his sentence. He got what is handed to him and that is what he must take.
Yes he can hunt other places in the country but the punishment dealt to him with the states he cannot hunt is still a plenty powerful one. Most of all, he has to deal with the himiliation, and the loss of respect from everyone who knows what was done. He isnt the "deerking" anymore, and frankly i thought the handle was a little egotistic anyway.
Guys have many levels of what they feel is unforgivable. This is a tough thing with me but I am willing to give it a shot in this case. Had I not known him before this went down, that would be a different story and i would admittedly be thinking different, but maybe not because he admitted it all and didnt try to lie and plead innocent on the charges like so many poachers do. If i threw him to the dogs i think a few years down the road i would feel like I was not a good person foor what I did. As much shit as i talk here on these boards about guys like Hoser and others I really am not like that in person. I dont think anyone who has met me will say otherwise. I may come across as a hard ass, but it is probably more because i am opinionated. Hell, even Miller likes me and he is a big puss

 

[AkBearHunter]

He can hunt in 28 other states, are any of them in the west? I know Alaska is one of the 22 in the pact. I'm thinking since most mule deer hunting is out west that he won't be hunting them for a long time. What about Canada, are they in this pact thing too?

 

[Dangerous Dave]

BuzzH, incredable posts!
I'm actually seeing both sides here, but I'm pretty inflexable when it comes to hunting and wildlife conservation ethics. At the same time, I'm not obsessing on DK because I hate his guts or that I like to stare at train wreaks and gore.
I find all this fasinating for one reason only: what is each of us capable of, if we allow ourselves to be pushed over the edge?
Buzz mentioned something about "moral fiber" that shook me to the core. It forced me to recall something from my past that I'm not too proud of -having to do with my personal life around 20-30 years ago. That I have ANY friends from that peroid of my life still associating with me -is a minor miracle. So I also understand DK's friends not wanting to abandon him. Forgiveness is a virtue AND a gift.
Still, this poaching thing is what is most troubling of all... and basically unforgivable.

 

[BuzzH]

Schmalts,

He lied to everyone...even himself.

He wrote an article for TH magazine and told everyone that picked up that magazine he legally killed a nice buck.

For Christ sake...how can you call that being honest?

He didnt admit anything until he knew the shit had hit the fan. TWO search warrants were issued...violation over an extended period of time. Poaching didnt bother his conscience for years and years...and if he wouldnt have got caught...he'd still be doing the same thing today.

He deserves no slack, no respect, and no sympathy. He also deserves to lose friends, his license in all states for life, hunting/fishing/outdoor priveleges of all kinds, all the equipment he used to conduct his poaching, as well as face huge fines...I mean several years wages. Not $7500 which is LESS than the cost of a trophy mule deer hunt in many places. Also, large cash rewards and/or hunting licenses need to be given to other hunters who turn these types of creeps in.

The more severe these crimes become the less they will happen.

He isnt a good guy Schmalts...as much as you want him to be. He had ZERO intention of even slowing down his poaching behavior. The only part he likely regrets is getting caught.

 

[schmalts]

No one takes wants to take the blame for anything anymore, they always have to blame it on something else, pretty sad the way people put off the blame on something anymore. you will see very few people in your life time that will ever say Hey I screwed up, with out the excuess that oh it was big, I was having a bad day, I was under alot of pressure etc.

You are correct on that Del. If you read my post before this you will see that this is probably the breaking point of why I wont tell him to Fugg off. Jeff didnt do what you just typed. Just for what it is worth i guess

 

[schmalts]

Schmalts,

He lied to everyone...even himself.

He wrote an article for TH magazine and told everyone that picked up that magazine he legally killed a nice buck.

For Christ sake...how can you call that being honest?

He didnt admit anything until he knew the shit had hit the fan. TWO search warrants were issued...violation over an extended period of time. Poaching didnt bother his conscience for years and years...and if he wouldnt have got caught...he'd still be doing the same thing today.

He deserves no slack, no respect, and no sympathy. He also deserves to lose friends, his license in all states for life, hunting/fishing/outdoor priveleges of all kinds, all the equipment he used to conduct his poaching, as well as face huge fines...I mean several years wages. Not $7500 which is LESS than the cost of a trophy mule deer hunt in many places. Also, large cash rewards and/or hunting licenses need to be given to other hunters who turn these types of creeps in.

The more severe these crimes become the less they will happen.

He isnt a good guy Schmalts...as much as you want him to be. He had ZERO intention of even slowing down his poaching behavior. The only part he likely regrets is getting caught.

Buzz, you are not seperating the crime from the present again. I know he lied, DUH!
Buzz, I agree with most of what you just typed but where does it end? Should his wife Divorce him? Father disown him? friends slash his tires? Where is the point that he gets the punishment needed and has a chance to start over?

 

[schmalts]

BuzzH, incredable posts!
I'm actually seeing both sides here, but I'm pretty inflexable when it comes to hunting and wildlife conservation ethics. At the same time, I'm not obsessing on DK because I hate his guts or that I like to stare at train wreaks and gore.
I find all this fasinating for one reason only: what is each of us capable of, if we allow ourselves to be pushed over the edge?
Buzz mentioned something about "moral fiber" that shook me to the core. It forced me to recall something from my past that I'm not too proud of -having to do with my personal life around 20-30 years ago. That I have ANY friends from that peroid of my life still associating with me -is a minor miracle. So I also understand DK's friends not wanting to abandon him. Forgiveness is a virtue AND a gift.
Still, this poaching thing is what is most troubling of all... and basically unforgivable.

Dave, good post. I agree that i see why no one will forgive someone for what they may have done. I think you can also agree that it is up to a person to draw his own line where they can forgive. I know damn well that no one that didnt know Jeff will give him a second chance. Even some that did know him think like Buzz do and I am O.K with that. What bothers me is that Buzz cannot deal with the fact that everyone hasent picked up a stone yet. Maybe the friends that stuck by you 20-30 years ago may have done the right thing looking back, and the ones that didnt stick by you did as well. It's a wierd thing when you think about it.
6 years ago I cut ties with my best Friend after his 4th DUI. I knew then it was hopeless and he was going down for good. After the 3rd DUI i helped him get a Job where i worked and put my name on the line for him. I took him in as an apprentice to learn a trade hoping his old mind rotting occupation was what was making him drink. Well after 2 weeks he showed up 2 hours late, still drunk, with a broken hand from punching a door because he was fueding with the girlfriend. After the 4th DUI, i told his see ya!! and guess what, i read he got his 7th DUI last summer and almost killed himself and girlfriend.