On Thursday a federal court in South Bend, Ind., sentenced Paul D. Papczynski, 49, of Lakeville, Ind., to four months home detention and pay a $4,000 fine for illegally selling and causing the interstate transfer of wildlife taken in violation of state and federal laws. Chief Judge Robert L. Miller also sentenced Papcynski to serve three years probation and pay a $100 special assessment.
Papczynski maintained a herd of wild white-tailed deer, held captive with high fences, on his property in Lakeville, Ind. Some of the deer in his herd were captured from lands around Indianas Potato Creek State Park by using tranquilizers to immobilize the deer. Using tranquilizers on wild animals and capturing wild deer for private use are prohibited by Indiana law. In October 2000, Papczynski sold and helped transfer more than 30 illegally-captured deer from his property in Indiana to an individual in Texas. The interstate transfer and sale of wildlife taken in violation of state law is prohibited by the Lacey Act, a federal wildlife protection law. Papczynski pleaded guilty to federal Lacey Act charges Aug. 25, 2005
Papczynskis guilty plea and sentencing are the result of a joint investigation into illegal deer hunting by special agents of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, agents from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and law enforcement agents of the Indiana Department of Natural Resources. The Northern District of Indiana U.S. Attorneys Office, represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Donald J. Schmid, presented the case in federal court.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting and enhancing fish, wildlife and plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages the 95-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System, which encompasses 545 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 69 national fish hatcheries, 63 Fish and Wildlife Management offices and 81 ecological services field stations. The agency enforces federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Assistance program, which distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies.
