Wideone is right about the lawyer. In a lot of states, it's not the judge who really rules on things. It comes down to the lawyer and the DA. They get togehter talk about there golf game and stuff and then BS back and forth about how to come to terms. On the other hand, some areas they get thier panties in bind (no offense to women here) then they want to throw the book at them.

If your buddy has a back up bow, his first mistake was to give his bow he is using now. What if he didn't go into the house to give up his bow? Did he gain anything? He's not been found guilty so if I were him, I would be in the woods. Hunt Hunt hunt, as you said he could loose his privalage in Wi and have to go to a neighboring state to hunt next year.

I wish him good luck.