Marksville Man Arrested for Killing Black Bear in Avoyelles Parish, Louisiana

Louisiana Dept. of Wildlife and Fisheries 02.26.13

A Marksville man was arrested and booked into the Avoyelles Parish Jail on Feb. 25 for his alleged role in the illegal killing of a Louisiana black bear.

Derek P. Sayer, 30, was arrested for shooting and killing a Louisiana black bear on Nov. 27, 2012 in Avoyelles Parish. A hunter alerted authorities on Nov. 27 about a dead black bear laying on an all-terrain vehicle trail on Avoyelles Parish School Board property located 20 miles northwest of Marksville.

Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) Enforcement Division agents and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service officers responded to the scene and immediately started a joint investigation. After a lengthy investigation, officials concluded that Sayer allegedly killed the bear.

LDWF performed a necropsy of the bear, which revealed the bear was fatally shot with buckshot. The bear was approximately two years old and weighed about 100 pounds.

Harvesting a Louisiana black bear brings a state fine between $900 and $950 and up to 120 days in jail. In addition, restitution for the value of the animal up to $10,000 could be imposed.

The Louisiana black bear has been listed on the Federal Threatened and Endangered Species List since 1992.

The North Louisiana Criminalistics Laboratory in Alexandria and the Criminal Investigation Unit of the Avoyelles Parish Sheriff’s Office provided forensic and technical assistance during the investigation.

Louisiana Dept. of Wildlife and Fisheries

The Louisiana Department of Wildlife & Fisheries – Enforcement Division(LDWF) is the fish & game regulatory agency of Louisiana. It has jurisdictionanywhere in the state, and in state territorial waters. The agency enforces both state and federal laws dealing with hunting, fishing, and boating safety. The agency also enforces criminal laws in rural areas including DWI enforcement both on highways and waterways. Most of the Department’s Wildlife Agents also carry Federal law enforcement commissions issued from the United States Department of the Interior - U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and United States Department of Commerce - U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS). These federal commissions allow these state officers to enforce federal migratory waterfowl laws and federal marine fisheries laws in state and federal waters off the coast of Louisiana. Besides their traditional role as a “game warden”, Louisiana Wildlife Enforcement Agents also have a number of other responsibilities, including conducting board of health inspections on some portions of the state’s commercial fishing industry. Agents are trained in and conduct numerous search and rescue operations, both in remote land areas and on the state’s waterways. Agents ensure that hunters, anglers, boaters, dealers, breeders, farmers, and transporters are in compliance with regulations governing equipment, quotas, licenses, and registrations. Agents also assist other State departments and law enforcement agencies in the coordination of educational and professional endeavors, as well as national and state emergency alerts by the Federal Office of Emergency Preparedness. In addition, agents perform search and rescue missions alone or in conjunction with other local, state, and federal agencies.