One of two Cass County men suspected of illegally possessing more than 100 sets of deer remains has been cited in the matter. 23-year old Sean Chamberlin, of rural Atlantic, is charged with 111 counts of illegal possession of deer remains, plus one count of illegally transporting deer, illegally killing a raccoon, illegally killing a badger, unlicensed harvesting of fur and failure to report a harvested deer. He had earlier been ticketed for littering. State Conservation Officer Brian Smith told the Daily NonPareil Sean’s father, 47-year old John Chamberlin, Jr., also of rural Atlantic, will be cited later this week.
John Chamberlin Jr., will be cited on suspicion of 111 counts of illegal deer possession, according to Smith. The citations for illegal possession of wildlife remains are simple misdemeanors and can result in thousands of dollars in civil penalties.
Authorities began investigating the father and son after a Dec. 29th report of someone dumping litter on the side of a rural road northeast of Atlantic, near the home of John Chamberlin. Responding deputies found the hides of four deer, a raccoon and a badger carcass. According to court documents, a deputy spoke to the two men about the remains. Sean Chamberlin said he dumped the remains along the road. The deputy asked Sean Chamberlin how he obtained the deer. Chamberlin said the deer were found dead, were roadkill or were shot in hunts.
But the story didn’t make sense when investigators compared the Chamberlins’ licenses to the animals that had been harvested, according to court documents. The next day, law enforcement officers were allowed onto John Chamberlin’s property, where antlers from at least 111 deer and other animal remains were discovered. In addition to the fine of $195 per set of dead animal remains, liquidated damages for an individual animal could be as much as $2,500, plus 80 hours of community service, or $5,000 in lieu of those hours.
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