Wealthy rancher charged in deaths of 32 bison

[villager]

Wealthy rancher charged in deaths of 32 bison

FAIRPLAY, Colorado (AP) -- Keep your bison off my property or risk having them hunted, software executive Jeff Hawn warned his neighbor outside this old Colorado mining town. In a lawsuit he said the animals knocked his satellite television dishes off line and left dung, tracks and hair on "pristine pasture on rolling hills."

Nine days after the suit was filed, shots rang out. The remains of 32 bison were strewn across Hawn's property and nearby land. Deputies learned that 14 hunters received a letter from Hawn giving them permission to hunt bison on his property.

Now Hawn -- the president and CEO of Seattle-based Attachmate who lives in Austin, Texas -- finds himself in criminal court, charged with theft and 32 counts of aggravated animal cruelty following the March shootings. The case has outraged many in Fairplay, a town of about 700 in the central Colorado plains founded by gold prospectors in 1859. It's also drawn attention to Colorado's "open range" laws.

Hawn has waived his right to a preliminary hearing to see if there's enough evidence for the case to proceed, asking instead to skip to a hearing to enter a plea, Park County court clerk Debbie McLimans said Friday. That hearing has not been scheduled. Hawn didn't respond to two messages left on his cell phone or another left with a spokeswoman at Attachmate.

One of Hawn's defense attorneys, Pamela Mackey, didn't return phone calls or an e-mail seeking comment, while another, Steve Csajaghy, said he couldn't discuss the case. But Csajaghy told the Rocky Mountain News in March that Hawn "had no other choice" but to get rid of the bison to protect himself.

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http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/09/12/bison.slaying.ap/index.html

[flvegan]

1. Enjoy jail, asshole.

Hope Attachmate fires your ass, too.

[Peregrine Took]

2. Don't drop the soap, you animal hating bast*rd. n/t