Wyo. hunter accused of killing 3 cougar kittens

Casper Star-Tribune

LANDER, Wyo. -- The Wyoming Game and Fish Department has cited a Greybull man for allegedly killing three mountain lion kittens.

Department officials say Demar Dusty Hill killed the kittens Jan. 5 on the western slope of the Bighorn Mountains near Shell. Hill pleaded not guilty Jan. 30 to three counts of poaching.

Greybull game warden Bill Robertson, who issued the citations, said the kittens probably were from the same litter or family group and were less than a year old.

"In this case, the subject came across a family, which is fairly uncommon, and chose to shoot them instead of watch them, which he should have done," Robertson said. "For most folks, it would have been a thrill to watch a group of cats like that."

Robertson said Hill took a male kitten he killed and left behind two female kittens. He said Hill later bought a mountain lion license, although such a license only would permit taking just one lion over a year old — and the license would need to be purchased beforehand.

Robertson said Hill took the male kitten to a Game and Fish Department office on Jan. 8 and presented it as a legal kill at a site different from where the kittens were killed.

"I don't believe the subject even knew that these were kittens," Robertson said. "He didn't understand the resource.

"Most people never see lions in the wild. While I cannot condone it at all, what he did — it's an egregious act — I think it sends a message that people don't understand wildlife. Here's a person who's a known sportsman, not a known violator, but he didn't understand the situation he was in."

A bird hunter found the carcasses of the two female kittens the day after the poaching and reported them to Game and Fish.

Messages left for Hill by the Casper Star-Tribune were not returned Thursday and Friday.