A Utah big-game outfitter who’s been investigated for alleged wildlife crimes in the past was sentenced in federal court Thursday for leading “canned” mountain lion hunts on public land in 2020 and 2021. The U.S. Attorney’s Office says that by profiting from the illegal hunts, wherein the clients unknowingly killed mountain lions that had been treed and held there for them, Wade Lemon violated the Lacey Act. Lemon, who owns and operates Wade Lemon Hunting, was sentenced to two months in prison, fined $10,500, and given a one-year ban on running commercial trips on federal lands.
The U.S. District Court Judge also sentenced Kacey Alan Yardley, who worked as a hunting guide and houndsman for Lemon, for his role in one of the canned hunts. In a sentence handed down yesterday, Yardley was given six month’s probation, during which time he is also banned from operating commercially on federal lands.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office explains in a press release that Lemon admitted to participating in two illegal mountain lion hunts that took place in December 2020 and January 2021 on lands owned by the Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Forest Service, respectively. Yardley also fessed up to his involvement in the 2020 hunt. Both hunts involved cougars that were treed or cornered well before a hunt began and were then kept there until a paying hunter could arrive to take the animal.
“Yardley admitted that during a canned hunt, a cougar was held at bay and its ability to escape was otherwise restricted to allow a hunter who was not a member of the initial hunting party to arrive and attempt to take the cougar,” the U.S. Attorney’s Office writes in the press release.
Because these practices are illegal in Utah, the two mountain lions were deemed to have been taken in violation of state law. And since Lemon’s outfitter profited from the illegal harvests, the federal court considered this a violation of the Lacey Act, which includes guiding and outfitting services in its definition of “selling” wildlife.
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“Canned hunts are illegal because they create an unfair advantage and can lead to inhumane treatment of the animals,” U.S. Attorney Trina Higgins said of the crimes that Lemon and Yardley pleaded guilty to. “It is also unfair to hunters who paid thousands of dollars for a guide and had no idea that they were participating in a canned hunt.”
Holding mountain lions in place for unsuspecting hunters is just one form of canned hunting, which the Boone and Crockett Club defines as “an artificial or bogus hunting situation where a kill is virtually guaranteed.” In addition to being illegal in many states, the B&C Club calls these unethical practices “an affront to fair-chase hunting.” During a fair-chase hound hunt, mountain lions have a high probability of escaping. These types of hunts often require hunters and houndsmen to cover miles of rugged backcountry terrain. The thrill and challenge of a hound hunt lies within the chase itself; it’s not about the simple shooting of a treed cat.
Lemon has been implicated in similar schemes before, and this isn’t the first time the Utah big-game outfitter has been accused of organizing and leading canned hunts. In 2022, reporters with the Utah Investigative Journalism Project revealed that Lemon was facing multiple felony charges for allegedly conducting a “fraudulent scheme” to put Donald Trump Jr. on a black bear illegally and make it seem like a legitimate hunt.
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Prosecutors in the case alleged that Lemon and his guides knowingly used bait to bring in a black bear that Trump Jr. killed on May 18, 2018. (Hunting bears over bait is legal in many states, but it is illegal in Utah.) Charging documents showed that a “pile of grain, oil and pastries” was discovered in the area, along with a trail camera — which had “WLH” and Lemon’s telephone number written on the side — pointed right at the pile. Prosecutors also cited a subordinate of Lemon’s, who confirmed that Lemon had him bait the location weeks before the May 18 hunt took place.
Further reporting by the Salt Lake Tribune in 2022 revealed that Lemon’s outfitter has been investigated eight times by the DNR for alleged hunting violations. These allegations include other instances of baiting, trapping bears in trees, and harvesting a Rocky Mountain bighorn in an off-limits area on Mount Nebo.