Kansas Poaching Ring: Judge Overturns Sentences

You may recall that massive Kansas poaching ring run by two Texas men that was broken up last year. The case resulted in prison sentences and/or heavy fines for dozens of hunters across the country. But now a federal judge has overturned the sentences of the two Texans at the heart of the case.

From this story on kansascity.com:

A federal appeals court has overturned the prison sentences of two Texas brothers who ran a camp in Kansas where hunters paid thousands of dollars to illegally shoot deer, sending the case back to district court, where the men will be resentenced. The 10th Circuit Court of Appeals said the district court made a mistake in sentencing James and Marlin Butler by basing the value of the wildlife on the full price of a guided hunt rather than the actual value of the animals.

The Butlers, of Martinsville, Texas, ran Camp Lone Star near Coldwater, Kan. James Butler owned the camp and was sentenced last year to 41 months in prison and ordered to pay a $25,000 fine and $25,000 in restitution to the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks. Marlin Butler, who worked as a guide, was sentenced to 27 months in prison and ordered to pay a $10,000 fine and $10,000 in restitution.