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Ram poacher seeks work release
7/4/02
By MIKE STARK, Billings Gazette Wyoming Bureau
CODY, Wyo. - A Greybull man convicted of poaching two trophy-class bighorn rams on Christmas Eve 2000 came to Park County Circuit Court on Wednesday hoping to have his jail sentence cut in half.
Despite Gary Vorhies' vow that he's a changed man who has learned his lesson, Judge Bruce Waters said that he might allow Vorhies to participate in a work release program.
But before that happens, Vorhies' therapist in Sheridan will need to take a close look at two odd items found in Vorhies' jail cell earlier this year: a newspaper photograph of a local Game and Fish warden that Vorhies had been in a dispute with and an obscene cartoon depicting a game warden.
Gerald Blanchard, Vorhies' counselor, testified by telephone that Vorhies had gotten over his animosity for the Game and Fish Department, including Craig Sax, who arrested him. Blanchard, though, was apparently unaware of the cartoon found in Vorhies' cell last March.
The photograph and the drawing were introduced in court after Blanchard testified. Waters said he was inclined to grant Vorhies work release, but only if Blanchard looks at the drawing and photos and says it does not change his opinion of Vorhies.
"I just want to make sure Mr. Blanchard is aware of this," Waters said.
Vorhies testified that he didn't know who made the drawing, which depicts a penis clothed in a game warden uniform, or how it and a photograph of Sax made it to the wall above the urinal in his jail cell.
Vorhies and Cody Cannady, also of Greybull, were arrested for killing two bighorn sheep Dec. 24, 2000 on the North Fork of the Shoshone River west of Cody.
Both were convicted of poaching last June.
Cannady, who started serving a one-year jail sentence in November had his sentenced reduced in May.
Vorhies, 40, was sentenced last October to a year in jail, a year of electronic monitoring, fined $10,000 and ordered to pay $30,000 in restitution. He also lost his hunting, fishing and trapping privileges for 50 years.
Exactly six months after he started his sentence, Vorhies asked the judge on Wednesday to let him immediately start electronic monitoring so he can get back to work and start earning money to pay off his fines and court costs.
He said he wants to be able to earn of living on his own and is frustrated that the county is having to see after his needs.
"Right now I feel like I'm a leech at the county jail over there," Vorhies said.
Vorhies said his time in Park County jail had caused him to reflect on his life and make significant changes in how he views himself, his crimes and the Game and Fish Department.
Although Vorhies had previously said he was improperly arrested, he told the judge that he accepts what he did and acknowledges that it was "selfish" and "ugly."
"I did what I did and I'm responsible for it," he said. "I look forward to putting this behind me, a hard lesson learned."
Vorhies said that once he's out of jail, he plans to publicly apologize through newspaper editorials, speak at hunter safety classes about poaching and allow the Game and Fish Department to use him as an "educational tool."
He said he's made significant changes and is ready to start a new life.
"Sitting in the county jail is no longer helping anyone, myself of the county," he said.
But County Attorney Kelly Rankin questioned whether Vorhies had truly gotten over his animosity toward the Game and Fish Department and Sax.
"We're not convinced he s taken responsibility," Rankin said.
He introduced the photograph of Sax found on Vorhies' cell wall and the drawing, which was discovered under his mattress by jail guards during a "shake down" in March.
Vorhies said the photo was on the wall for more than a week and that the drawing was up for a few days before he put it under his bed. Asked why he didn't just throw the pictures away, Vorhies just shook his head.
Wendy Press Sweeny, Vorhies' attorney, said that the photo and the drawing could have been put up by any of the jail inmates to tease Vorhies. Vorhies said that he does make drawings in jail, but they're usually of cowboys or rodeo riders.
"I draw better than that," he said, referring to the game warden drawing.
Despite questions over the pictures, everyone in the courtroom, including jail staff, said Vorhies has been a model inmate since he started serving his sentence in January. He's now a "trustee" at the jail, where he's given extra jobs and responsibilities in exchange for a few privileges.
Waters said it seems Vorhies has changed his attitude and come to recognize the implications of his crime and behavior.
"I think progress is being made," Waters said.
If he's granted work release, Vorhies will be faced with the prospect of finding work. That could be difficult in Cody, he said.
"My feeling is that's very unlikely," Vorhies said. "I'm not the most popular person in town."
Asked to elaborate, Vorhies said: "I took two sheep out of the population that they're not going to be able to enjoy anymore."
7/4/02
By MIKE STARK, Billings Gazette Wyoming Bureau
CODY, Wyo. - A Greybull man convicted of poaching two trophy-class bighorn rams on Christmas Eve 2000 came to Park County Circuit Court on Wednesday hoping to have his jail sentence cut in half.
Despite Gary Vorhies' vow that he's a changed man who has learned his lesson, Judge Bruce Waters said that he might allow Vorhies to participate in a work release program.
But before that happens, Vorhies' therapist in Sheridan will need to take a close look at two odd items found in Vorhies' jail cell earlier this year: a newspaper photograph of a local Game and Fish warden that Vorhies had been in a dispute with and an obscene cartoon depicting a game warden.
Gerald Blanchard, Vorhies' counselor, testified by telephone that Vorhies had gotten over his animosity for the Game and Fish Department, including Craig Sax, who arrested him. Blanchard, though, was apparently unaware of the cartoon found in Vorhies' cell last March.
The photograph and the drawing were introduced in court after Blanchard testified. Waters said he was inclined to grant Vorhies work release, but only if Blanchard looks at the drawing and photos and says it does not change his opinion of Vorhies.
"I just want to make sure Mr. Blanchard is aware of this," Waters said.
Vorhies testified that he didn't know who made the drawing, which depicts a penis clothed in a game warden uniform, or how it and a photograph of Sax made it to the wall above the urinal in his jail cell.
Vorhies and Cody Cannady, also of Greybull, were arrested for killing two bighorn sheep Dec. 24, 2000 on the North Fork of the Shoshone River west of Cody.
Both were convicted of poaching last June.
Cannady, who started serving a one-year jail sentence in November had his sentenced reduced in May.
Vorhies, 40, was sentenced last October to a year in jail, a year of electronic monitoring, fined $10,000 and ordered to pay $30,000 in restitution. He also lost his hunting, fishing and trapping privileges for 50 years.
Exactly six months after he started his sentence, Vorhies asked the judge on Wednesday to let him immediately start electronic monitoring so he can get back to work and start earning money to pay off his fines and court costs.
He said he wants to be able to earn of living on his own and is frustrated that the county is having to see after his needs.
"Right now I feel like I'm a leech at the county jail over there," Vorhies said.
Vorhies said his time in Park County jail had caused him to reflect on his life and make significant changes in how he views himself, his crimes and the Game and Fish Department.
Although Vorhies had previously said he was improperly arrested, he told the judge that he accepts what he did and acknowledges that it was "selfish" and "ugly."
"I did what I did and I'm responsible for it," he said. "I look forward to putting this behind me, a hard lesson learned."
Vorhies said that once he's out of jail, he plans to publicly apologize through newspaper editorials, speak at hunter safety classes about poaching and allow the Game and Fish Department to use him as an "educational tool."
He said he's made significant changes and is ready to start a new life.
"Sitting in the county jail is no longer helping anyone, myself of the county," he said.
But County Attorney Kelly Rankin questioned whether Vorhies had truly gotten over his animosity toward the Game and Fish Department and Sax.
"We're not convinced he s taken responsibility," Rankin said.
He introduced the photograph of Sax found on Vorhies' cell wall and the drawing, which was discovered under his mattress by jail guards during a "shake down" in March.
Vorhies said the photo was on the wall for more than a week and that the drawing was up for a few days before he put it under his bed. Asked why he didn't just throw the pictures away, Vorhies just shook his head.
Wendy Press Sweeny, Vorhies' attorney, said that the photo and the drawing could have been put up by any of the jail inmates to tease Vorhies. Vorhies said that he does make drawings in jail, but they're usually of cowboys or rodeo riders.
"I draw better than that," he said, referring to the game warden drawing.
Despite questions over the pictures, everyone in the courtroom, including jail staff, said Vorhies has been a model inmate since he started serving his sentence in January. He's now a "trustee" at the jail, where he's given extra jobs and responsibilities in exchange for a few privileges.
Waters said it seems Vorhies has changed his attitude and come to recognize the implications of his crime and behavior.
"I think progress is being made," Waters said.
If he's granted work release, Vorhies will be faced with the prospect of finding work. That could be difficult in Cody, he said.
"My feeling is that's very unlikely," Vorhies said. "I'm not the most popular person in town."
Asked to elaborate, Vorhies said: "I took two sheep out of the population that they're not going to be able to enjoy anymore."
