ORIGINAL: DM
When i was hunting brown bears a lot (in Alaska) that would have been an illegal kill. It then was, and probable still is, against the law to bother or harass denned up bears in any way. You could NOT poke around the den and then kill a bear if it came out.
Perhaps this is a story that should have went untold!
Drilling Man
I'm not sure what the rules are up there now, but they were not "poking" around the den trying to get the bear to come out. Anyway, if it was an illegal take, the outfitter they met the next day would have turned them in.
I do know that some rules have changed in certian areas last year, like someareas allowing bait for browns. Also, I heard you can use a predator call on a denned bear to coax it out of a den. I imagine it all comes down to whatarea your hunting up there that will determine the legality of a kill.