It is the law. A harvested animal is to immediately be tagged before said animal is gutted, moved, and or transported, etc.
My Opinion - Man I made a mistake so I own up to them. My brain fart not yours.
I would go to court. For a few reasons.
1. I would change my plea, not fight the issue, pay the fine and state to the judge why.
I would state "I know now, I really needed to tag that animal before I moved it, and I am truly sorry. I accept any fine I must pay because of my error and I assure you it won't ever happen again! I made a mistake, however through mistakes is how we learn. " That would be my response or something similar to it.
2. With the very few traffic tickets I earned in my lifetime I went to court mainly to see how the court system works. I paid the fine but the points where dropped to which I thanked the judge and the court. Heck I was guilty I got caught speeding because I was negligent of what I was doing. When I went before the judge he posed the fine to which I did as he asked and then I thanked him. He was taken back at my comment to which I explained. "Hey my points where dropped and I am happy to pay the fine. Works for me your honor thanks. It won't happen again." All to which the judge was rather surprised. But that is me
Look at this way - it could have been worse and you might have lost your hunting privileges.
Just my thoughts. Good luck and let us know the outcome
JW
Last edited by JW; 12-20-2013 at 10:46 AM.