Like many, I was aghast when I heard that a Wyoming man had used a snowmobile to run down a wolf last year, only to not finish the animal off, and then parade said animal through a local bar for patrons to take pictures like it was some Times Square mascot. I was equally taken aback that Cody Roberts, the man who ran the animal down, then got bored and euthanized the animal behind the bar, only for him to then see a $250 fine for his actions.
And as I've said in our past coverage, this is not hunting. It's not an ethical form of take. And goes against hunter ethics in every way possible. So please don't conflate the two. But the world was pissed, too, and it caused a lot of consternation within the Cowboy State, as folks from far and wide found out that the practice of "wolf whacking" was essentially legal, and used by ranchers and others to take down wolves and other predators.
But it caused enough of a headache for local law enforcement, as well as politicians, to increase the fines, re-assess the law's language, and, in recent months, indicted Roberts with felony animal cruelty, which could carry up to two years in prison. And in the latest saga of the case, Roberts entered a plea of not guilty. He's now set for a trial date in March, where this could get even messier.
