ah, i see, so when a person convicted of statuatory rape or criminal sexual assault of a minor (i've got a neighbor convicted of this) does ZERO NADA jail time and pays a 1500 dollar fine, does it make it right/fair to condemn someone to jail time for poaching??? should we institute a poaching offenders database??? yes, it sounds ridiculous, i know... but you're twisting my words... what i'm getting at is this... since when did hunting laws become such a serious blight/affliction on society as to warrant jail time in our already over-crowded system??

and no, i'm not rationalizing... what i'm seeing is a double standard... our criminal justice system lets much more serious offenses off light and we as a group (hunters in general) are sitting here moralizing about how this guy should do jail time... laws and their enforcement is what bothers me about the whole thing... i just want the dangerous ones behind bars, poachers are not a threat to society... if pulling a poacher out of a jail so i can get another rapist, murderer, kidnapper, or WHATEVER in there instead, so be it... we simple don't have the space to put everyone in jail and i'd be willing to bet that most people dont want the tax increases required to pay for more prisons, after all, tax cuts seem to be helping, no??

believe me, i'm all for making criminals pay the price, particularly those that endanger society... i just can't make jail time for poaching fit into my view of being a danger to society... kinda like how i dont think a college kid busted with a joint in her pockets should be doin 8yrs in state prison (an actual case here in IL about 8-10 yrs ago)... all i'm sayin is that the punishment should fit the crime, that's it, not advocating light sentencing or whatever, I just can't see poaching as an offense worthy of jail time (or the huge fines stated earlier)... as a hunter and fisher I can't stand poaching either, it is wrong, period and shouldn't be tolerated... but wrapping my head around sentencing a guy to jail time for the situation as it was laid out, no way in heck could i do that... i know i'm bein long winded about this, sorry... but appropriate sentencing touches a soft nerve with me... the guy that killed my brother didn't serve a SINGLE DAY in jail... did not pay a single dollar in fines... so I've seen it work the other way as well, and I'd hate to see a decent person who made a mistake get his life potentially ruined (jail time could cost him his job, his livelihood, cost his family, and etc.)... it not right to ruin a mans life over poaching, just as its not right to let someone off who's ruined someone elses life... there has to be appropriate punishment...