Actor Fined For Walking on Thermal Features in Yellowstone
Pierce Brosnan is in hot water with the National Park Service after walking through a prohibited area and posting photos of the incident on Instagram
Seventy-year-old 007 star Pierce Brosnan is in trouble with the National Park Service (NPS) after he posted pictures of himself on Instagram from early November that show him vacationing in Yellowstone National Park. The location where the photos were taken raised red flags with NPS officials and eventually sent Brosnan to court.
In the photos, Brosnan is in a closed thermal area marked with signs that direct visitors to stay on boardwalks and trails. The Associated Press reports he was in the northern region of the park at the Mammoth Terraces. Mammoth is a volatile area full of steaming waterfalls and hot pools. Boardwalks are well established in the area.
“The ground in thermal areas is fragile and thin, and scalding water is just below the surface,” wrote the U.S. Department of Justice in a press release announcing the sentencing. “Trespassing on thermal features is dangerous and can harm delicate natural resources within the park.”
The U.S. Attorney’s office recommended two years probation and a $5,000 fine for Brosnan, but the judge was more lenient. U.S. Magistrate Judge Stephanie A. Hambrick handed down his penalties on March 14 at the courthouse in Mammoth. Brosnan called in for the hearing.
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He pled guilty to foot travel in a thermal area and must pay a $500 fine and contribute $1,000 to the Yellowstone Forever Geological Fund as a community service payment. According to the Bozeman Daily Chronicle, Brosnan was on set in Montana around the same time as the park incident. He was filming a new Western titled Unholy Trinity in which he plays a sheriff.