A Utah big-game outfitter who\u2019s been investigated for alleged wildlife crimes in the past was sentenced in federal court Thursday for leading \u201ccanned\u201d mountain lion hunts on public land in 2020 and 2021. The U.S. Attorney\u2019s Office says that by profiting from the illegal hunts, wherein the clients unknowingly killed mountain lions that had been treed and held there for them, Wade Lemon violated the Lacey Act. Lemon, who owns and operates Wade Lemon Hunting, was sentenced to two months in prison, fined $10,500, and given a one-year ban on running commercial trips on federal lands.<\/p>\n
The U.S. District Court Judge also sentenced Kacey Alan Yardley, who worked as a hunting guide and houndsman for Lemon, for his role in one of the canned hunts. In a sentence handed down yesterday, Yardley was given six month\u2019s probation, during which time he is also banned from operating commercially on federal lands.<\/p>\n
The U.S. Attorney\u2019s Office explains in a press release that Lemon admitted to participating in two illegal mountain lion hunts that took place in December 2020 and January 2021 on lands owned by the Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Forest Service, respectively. Yardley also fessed up to his involvement in the 2020 hunt. Both hunts involved cougars that were treed or cornered well before a hunt began and were then kept there until a paying hunter could arrive to take the animal.<\/p>\n
\u201cYardley admitted that during a canned hunt, a cougar was held at bay and its ability to escape was otherwise restricted to allow a hunter who was not a member of the initial hunting party to arrive and attempt to take the cougar,\u201d the U.S. Attorney\u2019s Office writes in the press release.<\/p>\n
Because these practices are illegal in Utah, the two mountain lions were deemed to have been taken in violation of state law. And since Lemon\u2019s outfitter profited from the illegal harvests, the federal court considered this a violation of the Lacey Act, which includes guiding and outfitting services in its definition of \u201cselling\u201d wildlife.<\/p>\n
\u201cCanned hunts are illegal because they create an unfair advantage and can lead to inhumane treatment of the animals,\u201d U.S. Attorney Trina Higgins said of the crimes that Lemon and Yardley pleaded guilty to. \u201cIt is also unfair to hunters who paid thousands of dollars for a guide and had no idea that they were participating in a canned hunt.\u201d<\/p>\n
Holding mountain lions in place for unsuspecting hunters is just one form of canned hunting, which the Boone and Crockett Club defines as \u201can artificial or bogus hunting situation where a kill is virtually guaranteed.\u201d In addition to being illegal in many states, the B&C Club calls these unethical practices \u201can affront to fair-chase hunting.\u201d During a fair-chase hound hunt, mountain lions have a high probability of escaping. These types of hunts often require hunters and houndsmen to cover miles of rugged backcountry terrain. The thrill and challenge of a hound hunt lies within the chase itself; it\u2019s not about the simple shooting of a treed cat.<\/p>\n
Lemon has been implicated in similar schemes before, and this isn\u2019t the first time the Utah big-game outfitter has been accused of organizing and leading canned hunts. In 2022, reporters with the Utah Investigative Journalism Project revealed that Lemon was facing multiple felony charges for allegedly conducting a \u201cfraudulent scheme\u201d to put Donald Trump Jr. on a black bear illegally and make it seem like a legitimate hunt.<\/p>\n
Prosecutors in the case alleged that Lemon and his guides knowingly used bait to bring in a black bear that Trump Jr. killed on May 18, 2018. (Hunting bears over bait is legal in many states, but it is illegal in Utah.) Charging documents showed that a \u201cpile of grain, oil and pastries\u201d was discovered in the area, along with a trail camera \u2014 which had \u201cWLH\u201d and Lemon\u2019s telephone number written on the side \u2014 pointed right at the pile. Prosecutors also cited a subordinate of Lemon\u2019s, who confirmed that Lemon had him bait the location weeks before the May 18 hunt took place.<\/p>\n
Further reporting by the Salt Lake Tribune in 2022 revealed that Lemon\u2019s outfitter has been investigated eight times by the DNR for alleged hunting violations. These allegations include other instances of baiting, trapping bears in trees, and harvesting a Rocky Mountain bighorn in an off-limits area on Mount Nebo.<\/p>\n