NHLer Clayton Stoner fined $10K for hunting grizzly bear without a proper licence

NHL defenceman and northern Vancouver Island native Clayton Stoner has been fined $10,000 for hunting a grizzly bear without a proper licence.

Of that amount, $6,000 will beassigned as a contribution to habitat conservation. He has also been prohibited from hunting for three years.

Provincial court Judge Brent Hoy said this case receivedmore attention because Stoner is a hockey player.

Stonerpleaded guilty in B.C. provincial court in AbbotsfordonWednesdayto one of five charges stemming from the hunt in 2013.

Stoner, who grew up in Port McNeill and now plays for the Anaheim Ducks,was not in court. Hislawyer delivered the plea of guilty to one charge of hunting and killing a grizzly bear without a proper licence on Stoner's behalf.

The Crown dropped four other charges against him, includingknowingly making a false statement to obtain a hunting licence,hunting out of seasonand unlawfully possessing dead wildlife.

First Nationscondemn trophy hunts

Jess Housty, a tribal councillor with theHeiltsukNationon whose traditional territory the bear was shot, said the decision was good news, but didn't go far enough to address broader issues.

"I really hope that it makes other trophy hunters think twice about what they're doing," she said.

"I'm cautiouslyoptimistic, but I really think it just addresses one side of the coin."

Houstysaid acoalition of First Nationsmade a statement in 2012condemningtrophy hunting because the practice isn'tconsistent withtriballaws andvalues.

"[The fine]does deal with the fact that Stoner didn't follow regulations," she said."What's not addressed in this judgment, and what can't be addressed in these courts, is that he also contravened indigenous law and an indigenous ban on trophy hunting in our territory."

Houstysaid the death of the18-year-old grizzly, known as "Cheeky"by local First Nations guardiansbecause it was comfortable being viewed by humans, was upsetting to many in her community.

"We build strong relationships with our relatives in the animal kingdom," she said. "To lose a bear like this, especially under these circumstances, really grievedpeople deeply."

Misunderstanding ofresidency requirements

B.C.'s Conservation Officer Service alleged thatStoner failed to meet Wildlife Act regulations requiring anyone eligible for a B.C. hunting licence to live in the province for six of the 12 months prior to the spring grizzly bear hunt.

The court heard that Stoner bought a resident hunting licence on March 22, 2013, and that he shot and killed an adult male grizzly near Bella Bella on the central coast of B.C.,taking the head and hide.

Stoner,whowas a member of the MinnesotaWild at the time, has never denied shooting a grizzly,but his lawyer Marvin Sterndisputed the allegation that Stoner improperly obtained the hunting permits.

Stern argued that his client is a British Columbian who had to work in the U.S. for his job as an NHL defenceman. Stern also arguedthat because of the NHL lockout, which ran into January 2013, Stonerwas probably in B.C.more than usual in the year leading up to the grizzlyhunt.

Stern contended that while Stoner may have misunderstood the residency requirements for the hunting licence, and made an incorrect assumption he was a B.C. resident, he did everything else within the law during the hunt.

The Crown said Stoner didn't try to trick anyone but that he wasn't diligent in representing himself as a resident.

In a victim impact statement, the Raincoast Conservation Foundation asserted it owned the commercial trophy hunting rights in the location where Stoner killed Cheeky.

The court also heard from Central Coastal First Nations representative William Housty who asked that the bear's remains be returned for ceremonial burial.