Tennessee Cracks Down On Deer Poaching

Fourteen deer racks were confiscated from a man who was banned from hunting for life after charges of deer poaching and aggravated assault. (Photo: TWRA)

Estimated reading time: 3 minutes

Hunters in Tennessee were banned from hunting last month after multiple convictions of deer poaching and hunting offenses.

The Tennessee Wildlife Resource Agency (TWRA) announced a week ago that the man, William Franklin Stamey Jr., pled guilty to multiple charges of poaching. He was also convicted of aggravated assault and several hunting offenses.

Caught Deer Poaching

According to ABC6, 22-year-old Stamey and an accomplice went road hunting last August, using a spotlight to shoot deer from their car. Deer hunting season was closed at the time, yet they shot a doe and a 7-point buck. 

A homeowner allegedly attempted to stop the two poachers, but Stamey threatened to shoot and kill him. 

A short time later the two were found with hunting rifles and a spotlight by a county deputy. They and a third accomplice were charged and given court dates.

A month later, a representative from the TWRA went to Stamey’s home to investigate the poaching charges and found in the backyard a deer carcass

A History of Deer Poaching

After further investigation, the wildlife officer, Justin Pinkston, found other evidence of over 30 poached deer. He found a deer that had been supposedly killed with an archery tag, but Stamey did not have an archery hunting license. 

According to Outdoor Life, Stamey had already been charged with previous counts of poaching and illegal hunting. After a previous conviction in 2021, Stamey had made a plea bargain for his various hunting violations. 

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Pinkston explained that Stamey had “admitted to poaching 20 deer from the road in 2020 alone,” with most of the deer left unrecovered in the open. 

A Guilty Plea

The aggravated assault was the final straw though. Stamey pled guilty to an assortment of charges related to hunting violations and his aggravated assault against the homeowner. In the court rulings, Stamey was given multiple 6-month sentences to serve. 

On top of being banned from hunting for life, Stamey was ordered to pay over $10K in restitution. He was stripped of multiple hunting firearms, a compound bow, game meat, and 14 deer racks, among other contraband. 

Other Deer Poachers in Tennessee

Stamey is not the only Tennessee hunter to be convicted of deer poaching this last month. A father and son from Greene County just had their hunting privileges revoked after similar hunting offenses. 

According to the TWRA website, the two had engaged in deer poaching multiple times and were caught last September. They pled guilty to their charges and in February, were stripped of hunting rights as well as equipment and the deer. 

According to the TWRA, “Due to the Interstate Wildlife Violators Compact, individuals with revoked hunting privileges cannot legally hunt in any of the participating 46 states.”

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About the author: Kimber Pearce is a student, an avid shooter, and a pro-2A advocate.

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