First of all, I'm sorry if I've hijacked this post- I really just wanted to FYI, but....
It's a very hard and complex law to enforce but, all things concidered, I'm happy that the law's in place. There were a HUGE number of bucks and bulls being "found" in NM, and it had turned into a loophole that allowed poachers to run rampant (although it had gone on for years)
I've had lots of guys bring me heads before I've had a chance to look the scene over, and honestly there's a lot we can tell about an animals death from even an old pile of bones. I've had guys bring me elk heads in the Gila that had obviously been skinned to the antlers to make them appear older. I've had the same guy throw a tyrade when I wouldn't let him keep it.
I can't speak for the warden who took that head from you and won't even say he was wrong to do it. Trophy class animals put us in a real bind, and we have to answer to the rest of the state as to why it (as property of the state) wasn't sold for fair market value- and stand the risk of being accused of wrong doing by letting you take it. Should you have gotten first chance to buy it? Maybe. Maybe he didn't get a chance to know enough about it to be comfortable with that. I keep most of my heads for at least a few months before "giving" them back because I've been burned by finding out later they were dirty.
Should he have given you a shot at another bull, Maybe. There are lots of ways he could have dealt with it I guess and picking one aint easy. I'll let you in on a little secret- maybe you know you well enough to know your a great honest guy, but most of the dirtbags we deal with don't have a secret mark that lets us know they're dirty and it's not always easy to tell the diference.
A more tragic story is. "I poached this huge 6x6 up on the Dome burn. I told the Game Warden the fire killed it and he let me keep it" An even worse story... "Wow, that's Awesome, lets go do it again"
The guys in your camp should have charge a few bucks and given you a receipt for that buck. Otherwise it's still illegal to this day- and their being TOO nice put everyone in a jackpot too.
Anyway, I hate hearing of stories where someone gets a bad taste for the Game and Fish, two sides to every one though.
Hope that little insight softens it some, maybe next time you'll get the story " I was hunting in unit such-and-such, and the Warden pulled into our camp and asked us if we wanted to buy this great bull elk they just seized"
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