Montana man gets 2 months in a federal prison for evidence tampering after killing grizzly bear

An 80-year-old northwestern Montana man has been sentenced to two months in prison, a $10,000 fine and ordered to forfeit a rifle he used to kill a female grizzly bear on his property in November 2020.

MISSOULA, Mont. — An 80-year-old northwestern Montana man was sentenced Tuesday to two months in prison, a $10,000 fine and ordered to forfeit a rifle and scope he used to kill a female grizzly bear on his property in November 2020, it said. US Attorney’s Office. .

Othel Lee Pearson pleaded guilty in February to tampering with evidence for cutting off the bear’s GPS collar and throwing it into the Yaak River, removing the bear’s lip tattoo and ear tag and cutting off its legs to hide evidence of the killing, prosecutors said. He also pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge for failing to report the bear killing within five days as required by law.

The plea deal recommended three years of probation and no prison time.

Grizzly bears are protected as an endangered species under the Endangered Species Act and the Cabinet-Yaak area, which includes Pearson’s former property near Troy, is a designated grizzly recovery area, U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich said.

Pearson shot the bear outside his home in defense of himself and his wife, his lawyers said. They sought a probation sentence and an $8,000 fine.

U.S. District Judge Donald W. Molloy also ordered Pearson to serve four months of home confinement following his sentence, followed by three years of supervised release. The court allowed Pearson to report to prison.

Prosecutors alleged that the bear’s claws and ear tag were hidden in a hollowed-out tree on U.S. Forest Service property near Pearson’s home, and that bear meat was found in his freezer.