The Michigan Department of Natural Resources said a Kalamazoo man is facing several charges related to illegal deer hunting.
Scott Meisterheim, 55, was arraigned in January on charges and the DNR said he admitted he's "not the most ethical hunter," in court.
Meisterheim is charged with
- Taking white-tailed deer outside of lawful hunting hours (one count).
- Hunting white-tailed deer with no license (two counts).
- Uses the deer hunting licenses of another (two counts).
- Taking an overlimit of antlered white-tailed deer (two counts).
- Transporting/possessing untagged antlered white-tailed deer (three counts).
According to the DNR, they have also requested other charges to be filed.
The investigation into Meisterheim began in February 2022 after getting tips to the DNR's poaching hotline. A conservation officer found Masterheim took 11 deer from Oct. 1-Dec. 24, 2021, including three deer on Oct. 1.
The DNR said he also let two deer spoil and were rejected by the processor due to their condition.
The DNR conducted an interview with Masterheim in jail while he was lodged for domestic abuse, the DNR said.
He reportedly told the DNR, “Sure, I love to kill deer. If I could kill more I would, to be honest with you.”
“This is an excellent investigation of a poacher who shows no respect for the resource or the ethics of fair chase,” said Chief Dave Shaw, DNR Law Enforcement Division. “Violations of this type deprive law-abiding people of their opportunity to have access to and enjoy a public trust natural resource, in this case white-tailed deer.”
The DNR said he was hunting without a license, during all hours of the day, using illegal bait and also obtained other people's deer tags to cover his illegal deer.
