An Idaho man allegedly at the center of a black market scheme to buy and sell big game tags was sentenced this week, but some Gem State hunters are skeptical that the punishment fits the crime.
Karl Studer had been charged with seven felonies and over a dozen misdemeanors for harassing wildlife with a helicopter, poaching trophy-class bull elk, unlawfully possessing a trophy-class antelope, and buying and selling big game tags, among other violations.
In a plea agreement struck with the Twin Falls County Attorney’s Office, he pleaded guilty to a single felony count of illegally taking a bull moose. Court documents indicate that he killed the bull moose with the help of an unlicensed guide and/or using an aircraft to locate the moose.
At a sentencing hearing Monday morning, the judge ordered Studer to pay $180,344 in fines and court fees and serve five years of unsupervised probation along with 50 hours of community service, 25 of which must be dedicated to “wildlife preservation and/or conservation.”
Studer has also been banned from hunting in Idaho ever again, which, thanks to the Interstate Wildlife Violator Compact, bans him from obtaining a hunting license in most other states as well. During his five-year probationary period, he cannot accompany any other hunters into the field outside his own property.
Not Enough?
Idaho hunter Lee Birch told MeatEater that Studer deserved more for his actions.
“A lifetime hunting ban and the media exposure are the only silver linings in this case,” Birch said. “I believe a person of more humble means wouldn’t have acquired such a plea deal, especially if a public defense attorney were involved.”
Lee isn’t alone in his assessment, as evidenced by the comment sections of local media coverage. Hunters rarely feel that poachers get what they deserve, and this case in particular has sparked calls for serious jail time. But Twin Falls County Prosecuting Attorney Grant Loebs, whose office handled this case, said that without a prior criminal record, the odds of that were always low.
“Without a criminal record, nobody ever goes to jail or prison on these kinds of charges,” Loebs told MeatEater. “In the history of Idaho, nobody has ever gotten prison time, and very few people have ever gotten jail time [for wildlife crime]. The ones that get jail time have lengthy criminal records.”
Loebs also pointed out that even though Studer didn’t plead guilty to all the felonies related to elk and antelope poaching, he did pay the restitution fee for each one of those animals–not just the moose.
“We got the full cost per the fine schedule of all the animals that were killed,” Loebs said. “He paid for all of those just as if he’d been found guilty of all of them.”
In fact, according to Loebs, the sentence Studer received was similar to what he would have received had he been convicted of all seven felonies in a jury trial.
“All of these felonies have a maximum five-year punishment. To dismiss two or three–or even five or six–to get one doesn’t matter as long as you get one,” Loebs said. “If you charge someone with 10 cases, he’s not going to get 50 years. He’s going to get five. They’re not going to be combined and added. It’s routine and utterly harmless to the case to have someone plead guilty to one felony when they’re charged with four or five.”
Sentencing documents show that Studer was sentenced to a period of custody of 3 years followed by an indeterminate period of custody of up to 2 years, but that sentence was suspended. Loebs says judges frequently suspend prison sentences, even in the case of crimes against other humans.
“We convict people of aggravated battery, vehicular manslaughter, all manner of drug cases, of beating their wives, and many of these people get probation,” Loebs said.
The Trial
The sentence could have been even lighter than it was. Studer’s defense attorneys argued he should receive a five-year hunting ban instead of a lifetime prohibition. Studer himself apologized to the court, the state, and Idaho’s wildlife agency.
“I’m ashamed of how we ended up here, never my intention. However, I fully accept all responsibility for my actions and accountability around that,” Studer said, according to local media.
But Loebs said they were committed to making sure Studer never hunted again. Prosecutor Jethelyn Harrington told the court that “Karl Studer should never be allowed to hunt in the state of Idaho again.”
“Studer is an arrogant man who has stolen from Idaho’s precious resources in a very inhumane and undignified way,” he said. “His blatant disregard and lack of respect for other hunters in Idaho is full-scale cheating, breaking rules that everyone else has to follow.”
Judge William Hancock agreed with the prosecution and said the sentence was designed to send a message to other poachers.
“The court is mindful that the sentence set here today will be a sentence that not only has an impact for (Studer), but also has a message for others,” Hancock said.
Whether that message is enough to put an end to the black market for landowner tags remains to be seen. As we reported last year, illegally buying and selling big game tags has taken place in Idaho for years. Studer was likely among the worst offenders, as evidenced by text messages included in his criminal affidavit.
He spent over $150,000 purchasing Landowner Appreciation Tags (LAPs) in 2023, and law enforcement accused him of conspiring to resell them, which is illegal. He was also accused of using a helicopter to scout for big game animals, and he allegedly used someone else’s tag on two bull elk and took one more bull than he was supposed to.
Investigators also found a video in Studer’s iCloud showing a live pronghorn antelope gasping in the back of his truck, which he claimed to have shot from 760 yards. For that he was charged with a felony for unlawful possession of a trophy antelope.
Despite his skepticism that Studer’s sentence fits these crimes, Birch is hopeful the judge’s decision will send a message–and it could be enough to increase everyone else’s odds this fall.
“Hopefully, this case deters such egregious behavior in the future,” he said. “I’m definitely a little more optimistic we’ll find a once-in-a-lifetime trophy muley this fall for my 14-year-old son to harvest, filling the highly coveted tag he drew this year.”
Images via MossBack Guides and Outfitters/Facebook.
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