MOUNT CARMEL - A Coal Township man charged with killing a black bear out of season was ordered to pay approximately $3,000 in fines, costs and restitution after pleading guilty to a summary offense of unlawful taking or possession of game or wildlife.
Christopher R. Powell, 22, of 1127 W. Gowen St., entered the plea before Magisterial District Judge Hugh Jones, who ordered the defendant to pay a $1,500 fine, $1,500 in restitution and $83.50 in costs.
A misdemeanor charge of unlawful killing or taking of big game was withdrawn in exchange for the guilty plea to the lesser offense.
A charge of unlawful killing or taking of big game filed against co-defendant Nathan R. Zimmerman, 23, of 244 Doutyville Road, East Cameron Township, was withdrawn by Northumberland County Assistant District Attorney William Cole due to a lack of evidence.
"State game commission officials and myself felt that Mr. Powell was more culpable of committing the crime than Mr. Zimmerman, and that's why we withdrew the charge against Mr. Zimmerman," Cole explained.
"It would have been difficult to prove Mr. Zimmerman guilty of the charge due to a lack of evidence," he added.
Powell and Zimmerman were represented at Wednesday's legal proceeding by Attorney Marc Lieberman of Elysburg.
Both men were charged by Wildlife Conservation Officer Jason B. Kelley of the Pennsylvania Game Commission with killing a black bear out of season on June 2 on Doutyville Road near Zimmerman's residence.
Claimed self defense
According to a criminal complaint, the game commission received a call at 8 p.m. June 2 from Zimmerman, who stated that he just killed a bear in self-defense at 250 Doutyville Road. Zimmerman said the bear was hanging around the area as he and his friends, including Powell, were cooking chicken and stripping copper wire.
Zimmerman said he and his friends yelled at the bear and threw rocks at it in an attempt to scare it off, but the animal kept coming back.
Zimmerman said he then sent his girlfriend and a child to his house, approximately 400 yards away, while he and Powell stayed behind. But as the bear got closer, Zimmerman and Powell retreated to the house as well. As Zimmerman and Powell were walking to the home, Zimmerman claimed the bear got within a few feet of them, so he shot it five times with a Taurus Judge 45/410 revolver.
During an interview with game commission officers, Zimmerman said he shot the bear three times with 45 long colt shells, causing the bear to fall to the ground. Zimmerman said he then walked up to the bear and shot it twice more with 410 buck shot at point blank range in the head.
Zimmerman said he shot the bear for the safety of children in the area.
Upon being interviewed again a few days later by game commission officials, Zimmerman was asked if he had been drinking on June 2, to which he replied, "no." Game commission officers noted in the complaint that a large amount of beer cans and bottles were found on the property.
Zimmerman reported that Powell also had a gun on June 2, but did not fire it at the bear.
During an interview with game commission officials on June 6, Powell said the bear was spotted in the area, prompting him and his friends to yell at it and throw rocks in its direction in an attempt to scare it away. Powell said at one point, Zimmerman had given him a semi-automatic pistol that belonged to Zimmerman's cousin.
Powell said after his daughter and Zimmerman's girlfriend went to the house, he and Zimmerman started to pick up their belongings and began backing down a driveway when the bear appeared. Powell said he heard Zimmerman shoot, so he began shooting. Powell told game commission officers that he believed he fired two shots.
During a subsequent interview with game commission officers on June 6, Zimmerman, who claimed to suffer from short-term memory, said he was about 15 to 18 yards away from the bear when he shot it. Zimmerman said he wasn't in fear of his life when he saw the bear.
Zimmerman was then asked if he saw an opportunity to kill a bear, to which he replied, "Well, I am not going to incriminate myself."
On June 7, Kelley and fellow Wildlife Conservation Officer Rick Dietrich performed a post-mortem examination, or necropsy, on the bear at the Northeast Region Office of the Pennsylvania Game Commission in Dallas, which revealed the animal died from gun fire. The necropsy indicated that all bullets passed through the side of the body at a near right angle.