OHA to meet with DAs, encourage prosecution of wildlife offenses

For decades, the Oregon Hunters Association has stood as the frontline defense for our state’s wildlife resources. Through our unwavering financial and promotional support of the Turn In Poachers (TIP) program, OHA members have stepped up time and again. We have put our own dollars on the line, funding cash rewards and generating the vital leads that allow Oregon State Police Fish & Wildlife Troopers to track down and arrest wildlife thieves.

But our commitment to conservation cannot end when the handcuffs come out.

Enforcement of existing law is not easy, and OSP troopers do the grueling work of catching poachers, with alert citizens providing the tips; yet we also know that cases languish or get downgraded when they reach the local courthouse. Overburdened county systems often treat wildlife crimes as minor property offenses rather than the serious, intentional thefts they truly are.

With all this in mind, OHA is launching a new initiative to guarantee that violators of our existing hunting statutes and regulations face the full weight of the law – that each prosecutor treats game law violators seriously and prioritizes these cases.

“To kick off this initiative, I will travel to counties across Oregon to meet with district attorneys and prosecutors,” said Todd Adkins, executive director of OHA. “We need to find out why these cases fall through the cracks and what we can do to help fix the process.”

OHA’s message to prosecutors is simple: wildlife crime is community crime. Poaching strips economic resources from law-abiding citizens, compromises public safety, and steals legal opportunities from sportsmen across the state.

“We do not need a notebook full of complicated restrictions on the books,” Adkins continued. “We need relentless, unyielding prosecution of the criminals who are breaking our clear, existing game laws. This is our goal with the initiative.”

OHA’s strong support of the TIP program proves that the organization is willing to do the heavy lifting to clean up our woods. This new tour of our state’s DA offices is the logical next step in that commitment.