Probationers and Paroles Getting Hunting Licenses

Here's an article from the AssPress trying to make an issue out of nothing.

Hundreds of people barred from having guns because they are felons on parole or probation are still able to get hunting licenses in Montana with no questions asked, an Associated Press investigation found. Montana may not be alone. While nearly all states ban felons from possessing guns, only a handful _ including Rhode Island and Maine _ keep them from receiving hunting permits, and just a few others _ such as Illinois and Massachusetts _ require hunters to show both a hunting license and a firearms license.

"Our license dealers have no way of checking," said Lt. Rich Mann, with the enforcement program for the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife. "If someone wants to play with the system and beat you at it, they will."

I started reading and thought "who cares?" They can hunt with Bow, so why do you care? And why shouldn't they be allowed to hunt within the legal alternatives allowed to them? Well, the article just doesn't seem to want to say.

The AP examination of Montana hunting and corrections records shows at least 660 felons on parole or probation received tags in the past year. The findings are based on a comparison of unique first, middle and last names, along with other identifiable information, that appeared in databases of both hunters and felons.

A state probation official said the findings likely would prompt the state to consider its own records search to see if parolees are violating terms of their release.

"Obviously that's a big concern, and it makes me want to look into each of these cases," said Ron Alsbury, Montana's probation and parole bureau chief.

Why would you bother? 660 felons got a tag, but no one states how many violated their parole by using a firearm for hunting. So, again, How is this a problem?

Jason Beaudoin of Frenchtown, on probation for a 2002 conviction for assault with a deadly weapon, got a series of hunting tags last year, but said he used only a bow and arrow.

"I know I can't own a firearm or be in possession of one. They made that very clear ... and I agree with the policy," Beaudoin said.

"There are plenty of ways people can hunt even though they are barred from using conventional weapons," added Gary S. Marbut, president of the Montana Shooting Sports Association. "My guess is that there are a lot of them that are being perfectly decent citizens."

The problem is, no one knows for certain.

So you don't know to what level this is a problem, but you're probably going to propose that the state require background checks to get a hunting license.

"The result in Idaho is that you could theoretically be a convicted cannibal and still have a hunting license," said Ed Mitchell, a spokesman for the Idaho Department of Fish and Game in Boise. "But if you are a convicted cannibal, you cannot legally own a bent BB gun in the state of Idaho."

I think Mitchell may not have wanted to be part of this interview.

With millions of hunters in the U.S. _ nearly 270,000 in Montana alone _ authorities in many states say it simply would be too difficult to check if felons are getting hunting tags.

snip

The AP review found that roughly 8 percent of 8,732 people on parole or probation in Montana had obtained hunting licenses in the past year.

Many hunters with felony convictions had no listed phone numbers, while others did not return calls seeking comment.

I wouldn't have called you idiots back either. Look at the math on this one. 8% of 8732 is 699, which confuses me as to that 660 number listed above, but I'll just go on with this. So 699 paroles or probationers is what percentage of 270,000 Montana hunters? That's .26%.

Alsbury said his agency did a spot check of its records about five years ago to see if violators had hunting tags. Officers confiscated some guns.

Alsbury said the AP investigation suggests it may be time to search again.

"With the technology we have now we should be routinely checking that," he said.

That's right, the number of violations is unknown, but because some tin-foiler thinks they should be checking, they start reporting on this abomination of a law enforcement failure.

Don't these people have anything better to do?