A Jefferson County judge sentenced an Evergreen man who killed two bear cubs to two years of probation, after he received a felony conviction that makes it illegal for him to ever again possess a gun.
Daniel Clay Williams, 51, fired two rubber buckshot rounds at the cubs, as they were rummaging through the trash outside his home. When his dog ran outside, Williams then used live ammunition and killed one cub and wounded the other. It was later euthanized.
The bullet hit both bears and also blasted through a neighbor’s window.
A jury last year found him guilty of illegal discharge of a firearm, animal cruelty and illegal possession of wildlife.
Convicted felons are barred from possessing firearms, a penalty that will be hard on Williams, who is an avid hunter. “Our primary goal was that he not possess a gun again,” said Pam Russell, spokeswoman for the 1st Judicial District Attorney’s Office. “That was accomplished by the felony conviction.”
At a sentencing hearing on Monday, Williams was “very apologetic,” Russell said.
He told 1st District Judge Tamara Russell that he regrets the shooting every day, that he and his family have received death threats, and his business was damaged as a result.
His sentence includes 48 hours of community service and a $2,000 fine. He also was ordered to pay $187 for the window.
