RICHMOND \u2014 Two hunters pleaded guilty Thursday in the illegal killing of the \u201cHollywood buck,\u201d a majestic 29-point deer that for years roamed this city\u2019s ornate Confederate burial ground.<\/p>\n
Jason Walters of Richmond entered guilty pleas to 20 misdemeanors in Richmond General District Court related to the illegal hunting of three deer, including the buck known in Richmond and beyond as a frequent visitor to historic Hollywood Cemetery.<\/p>\n
Walters was sentenced to six months in jail, with three months suspended, and ordered to pay $2,500 in fines and $11,000 in \u201creplacement costs.\u201d He also lost his hunting privileges for 24 years.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think he\u2019s just happy to put this behind him and move forward and make sure the restitution is paid,\u201d said Walters\u2019s lawyer, Gregory R. Sheldon.<\/p>\n
Alan Proffitt, also of Richmond, pleaded guilty to six misdemeanors, all related to the Hollywood buck, which was killed in December. Officials referred to him as an accomplice. Proffitt was ordered to pay $1,250 in fines and serve 30 days of house arrest. His hunting privileges were revoked for six years.<\/p>\n
The penalties represent \u201cone of the strongest enforcement outcomes in recent memory\u201d for wildlife crimes, the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources said in a written statement announcing the pleas.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe considerable penalties included will certainly be a deterrent to future wildlife crime and should give the community a level of comfort that this type of crime is taken very seriously in the Commonwealth,\u201d it said. \u201cHunting is a treasured tradition in Virginia. Unethical and criminal behavior tarnishes the reputation of the sport and gives a bad name to those that engage in it lawfully.\u201d<\/p>\n
The department\u2019s law enforcement team executed 10 search warrants as it investigated the case, with assistance from Chesterfield County and Richmond police, the cemetery and Richmond\u2019s Department of Parks and Recreation. The department said it will work with \u201cthe outdoors community\u201d and others to \u201cdetermine the best way to memorialize this incredible animal.\u201d<\/p>\n
Residents near the cemetery estimated that the Hollywood buck was about 8 years old. They called him Prince, guessing he was the offspring of another regal buck they\u2019d dubbed King. Hunting with firearms is illegal in the city of Richmond and in the cemeteries where the Hollywood buck was known to roam.<\/p>\n
Walters posted photos of himself with the dead Hollywood buck on the Star City Whitetails Facebook page. He said he shot it in rural Prince Edward County, about 70 miles southwest of Richmond. But hunters and wildlife photographers recognized the deer\u2019s distinctive 29-point rack.<\/p>\n
Walters was arrested in January on charges that included trespassing, failing to check and tag a deer and littering, according to court records. The charges also related to two other bucks that authorities said Walters poached from a part of Richmond that includes neighborhoods, cemeteries and parkland.<\/p>\n