American guitarist, musician, and singer, Ted Nugent, who brought us classic 70s rock tune ‘Cat Scratch Fever’ amongst others, has agreed to plead guilty to charges stemming from a hunting trip in Alaska where he illegally killed a bear.
Yes, turns out when he’s not being investigated by the Secret Service for making threats against US President Barack Obama, he’s busy touring around the country with a television crew busy shooting him shooting stuff. Try saying that fast.
According to USA Today, Ted illegally shot and killed the bear back in 2009, a few days after he wounded a bear during a hunt with a crossbow. While Alaska does have a bear hunting season, there is a limit of one bear per person, and wounding a bear counts towards your quota.
Conveniently the entire thing was captured on film by the television crew with the Outdoor Channel, and Ted is also in trouble for using a number of bear-baiting sites on U.S. Forest Service property.
As part of the plea agreement, Nugent acknowledges that he knowingly possessed and transported the bear illegally, and has agreed to pay a $10,000 fine to the federal government and $600 to the state of Alaska.
According to the document, Nugent has also agreed to two-years probation, including a condition that he not hunt or fish in Alaska or Forest Service properties for one year.
But not content with punishing him financially, prosecutors have also compelled the ageing rocker to create s public service announcement that will be broadcast during his show for the rest of the year.
“This PSA will discuss the importance of a hunter’s responsibility in knowing the rules and regulations of the hunting activities that they engage in, which is subject to the review and final approval, prior to any broadcast, by a representative of the United States Attorney’s Office in the District of Alaska,” the agreement says.
It isn’t the first time Nugent has gotten into trouble over his hunting practices. In 2010, Nugent plead no contest to charges of illegal deer baiting and failing to have a properly signed hunting tag while on a 2009 hunt in Northern California.
The court fined him $1,750 fine and revoked his Californian hunting license, after that too was conveniently captured on film for his television series.
