Alberta fines U.S. sportsman $14,500 for videotaping animal cruelty.

[abc]

Alberta fines U.S. sportsman $14,500 for videotaping animal cruelty

BY RYAN CORMIER, OCTOBER 19, 2011

Jeffery Foiles, 54, of Illinois posed on camera with a half-dead duck,
manipulating its beak and making quacking noises.

EDMONTON — An American sportsman who sells videos of his bird hunts has
been fined $14,500 for illegal practices and cruelty to animals during
trips to Alberta.

Jeffery Foiles, 54, of Illinois, pleaded guilty last month in provincial
court to five counts under the Migratory Birds Convention Act and one
Criminal Code violation, cruelty to animals, for a series of videotaped
incidents.

In 2003, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife service contacted Canadian
authorities about Foiles and sent videos he'd made while north of the
border.

That started a lengthy investigation, said Brian Petrar, operations
manager for Wildlife Canada's enforcement division.

"Because of the commercial aspect, we were very interested from the
beginning, because he was making money in relation to activities in
Canada," Petrar said outside court.

Foiles was in Canada between 2004 and 2007 to film his popular video
series, Fallin' Skies. Clips from the videos, which can be seen on the
Internet, show footage of camouflaged hunters shooting birds while a dog
retrieves dead waterfowl. The footage is accompanied by music.

The video that brought Foiles to a Canadian courtroom showed different
behaviour. On video, Foiles admitted he'd exceeded the legal limit for
the number of geese he could kill in one day — and manipulated the body
of an injured duck while making "quacking sounds."

In an October 2007 incident, Foiles retrieves a wounded duck and holds it
up for the camera. He then "wrenches the duck's neck and manipulates the
head so the bird is looking at him. He says, 'Look at me when I'm talking
to you,' " according to an agreed statement of facts.

He then slaps the bird's head and opens its mouth to make "quacking"
sounds before moving off camera to kill the animal.

In a different incident, Foiles again manipulated the body of a wounded
duck and "played for the camera" while making commentary.

The incidents happened in different locations within 60 kilometres of
Edmonton, Petrar said.

Provincial court Judge Susan Richardson also banned Foiles from hunting
in Alberta for three years. She told court that she took the guilty pleas
as signs of remorse from Foiles.

Foiles appeared in court for his conviction, but did not appear on
Wednesday. His lawyer presented court with a certified cheque.

As one of the charges is from the Criminal Code, Foiles "will have a
criminal record that may affect his ability to enter this country,"
Richardson said.

Foiles was limited to shooting 42 geese and shot 52. He was caught
shooting 16 ducks, doubling the limit of eight.

The charges wouldn't have been possible had Foiles not videotaped the
crime, Petrar said.

Foiles is well known among American waterfowl hunters, but Petrar said
it's hard to tell if the convictions will affect his celebrity.

Petrar pointed to greed as the main motive.

"He wasn't afraid to break the rules to make money."