March 21, 2012
By Emily Russo Miller, JuneanEmpire.com
The brother of local fishing guide Michael P. Duby pleaded guilty
to two state of Alaska hunting misdemeanor violations in Juneau
District Court Tuesday.
Jason W. Duby, 36, appeared in court
via cell phone from a fishing boat in Maui, Hawaii, where he works
as a sport fishing guide. He pleaded guilty to black bear baiting
without a permit in 2009 and to hunting in a closed area, Mendenhall
Lake, in June 2007.
Duby is one of about nine people,
including family members, friends and clients, charged with hunting
or fishing violations in connection to local guide Michael P. Duby,
37, the owner and operator of FishHunter Charters in Juneau.
Michael P. Duby received one of the harshest sentences in the
history of the state of Alaska last month for breaking wildlife
laws, prosecutors said at the time.
His sentence totaled 280
days to serve in prison and tens of thousands of dollars in fees and
restitution, plus five years probation and revocation of his fishing
and hunting license for multiple state and federal hunting and
fishing violations from May 2007 to June 2009.
According to
charging documents, Jason Duby admitted to hunting an unregistered
bear site behind his brother’s property in the 7200 block of Glacier
Highway in Juneau three to four times in 2009 with his Bow-Tech
compound bow and Bremann arrows.
He also admitted
maintaining the bait site with duck, fish, dog food and pink and
white marshmallows as bait.
A trail camera set up Alaska
Wildlife Troopers in Juneau photographed the Duby’s and others in
the act.
Until the change of plea hearing, Jason Duby
maintained his innocence that he did not kill a bear in 2009, but
law enforcement obtained photos of Jason posing with his kill and
compound bow, according to charging documents. The incriminating
photograph was found in the Facebook photo album of one of his
friends tilted “My back yard bear hunt + 1” with the caption “my
captain up here ... slayed this thing with his bow.” In subsequent
interviews, Jason Duby’s friends gave him up and admitted Duby
killed the black bear. Both of those friends, Jordan and Andrew
Morse, pleaded guilty to a violation offense of illegally possessing
and/or transporting the bear killed by Jason Duby.
On
Tuesday, Juneau District Court Judge Keith Levy accepted a proposed
plea deal for Jason Duby that imposed 20 days in suspended jail
time, about
$4,000 in fines and about $1,220 in restitution, plus
three years of probation, and revocation of his Alaska sport hunting
license for one year.
Duby will also be required to forfeit
the black bear skull and hide, bow and arrows and a trail camera
used at the black bear site.
...
Duby will not be
able to hunt in the 35 states participating in the Interstate
Wildlife Violator Compact, which is an agreement between about 35
states to recognize suspension of hunting, fishing and trapping
licenses in member states.
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