FWC arrests Lanark man for shooting bear

A Lanark-area man has been arrested for illegally shooting a bear near Lanark Village.

On Oct. 22, Gene Strickland was arrested by Eric Johnson after the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) officer saw him shoot a bear with an arrow and then photograph it.

The bear was shot on private property belonging to The St. Joe Company near the St. James Golf Course, about 400 yards west of McIntyre Road. Strickland is one of several hunters who hunt the property. Alan Smythe of Wakulla County, a former FWC employee shares the lease with Strickland according to Stan Kirkland, an FWC spokesman.

Since the bear was shot on private property, Strickland faces stiffer charges if convicted of killing a species of special concern. Bear hunting is a misdemeanor within a national forest punishable by a $500 fine. On private property, where it is a third-degree felony he could be fined up to $5,000 and face five years in jail.

If found guilty, Strickland could lose his hunting and fishing licenses in Florida. Under the Interstate Wildlife Violator Compact, he would also be banned from fishing or hunting in 34 additional states, including Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas.

Even if he retains his license, as a convicted felon, Strickland would not be allowed to hunt using a gun, but could bow hunt.

Black bears are classified as a threatened species in Florida and are fully protected. There is no open season for the taking of bears. Also under Florida law, it is prohibited to place food or garbage out to intentionally attract bears.

The sale or purchase of any bear carcass. or part of one, is prohibited unless legally acquired. A tag bearing the name and address of the possessor and the date when and the specific place where it was taken is required.

After his arrest, Strickland was released on his own recognizance. FWC said this is Strickland’s first wildlife offense.

He is scheduled to be arraigned before Circuit Court Judge Angela Dempsey on Nov. 9.

According to an FWC press release, Strickland, 59, a dock builder and fishing guide, was charged with one count of killing a black bear and taken to the Franklin County Jail. Strickland’s bow and arrow, and four-wheeler, were seized. The vehicle was later returned to his wife, and the weapons retained as evidence.

According to Johnson, at the time of his arrest Strickland remarked “It was just a bear.”

At the time of the incident, Strickland was hunting from a deer stand located on the power line. The bear, a 175-pound female, was shot at 6:15 p.m. when it passed within 50 feet of the stand.

Johnson had observed Strickland for about 30 minutes before the shooting occurred.

A state employee, who asked not to be named, said the FWC officer was dispatched in response to reports of “unusual activity” on the hunting lease.

Although unconfirmed by law enforcement, Strickland may have been baiting his hunting stand with fish as well as corn.

In a blog chain entitled “Bear Poacher” on the Florida Sportsman webpage; several bloggers wrote that Strickland was baiting the bear with fish hung in a tree.

One blogger who described himself as “USAF Retired, Franklin County Teacher Retired, Franklin County School Board Member,” wrote that he had seen bears near the arrest site eating plants that the blogger believed were intended to lure deer to a nearby blind.

“I live about a half-mile from the arrest location,” he wrote. “I ride my bicycle near the area every day for exercise. This afternoon I saw a bear feeding in front of a blind. It is obvious that the planted feed attracts bears as well as deer.

“There was a few years when St. Joe did not lease that land for hunting. During that time our neighborhood was overrun with bears feeding on acorns from October to January,” the blogger wrote. “The bears have not showed up the since the hunting leases began again. Coincidence?”