Seeking Best Idaho Fish and Game Attorney

[Customweld]

This could cause some issues using an Idaho residency tag...

He'd have to be airborn!

 

[Erict]

Unfortunately, there is no universal standard for state residency, and state agencies often have different definitions for "resident/residency" (driver licenses, hunting licenses, income taxes, etc.). For hunting licenses, there is only so much a license vendor or the software can do to confirm your "resident" license eligibility. In most cases, the onus is on the purchaser to affirm their qualifications - much like signing a contract. Here in NY, one must sign such affirmation under penalty of perjury that all statements on their license application are accurate and true - if lie or deceive and get caught they have a hard time blaming the vendor or others. Most hunters don't even realize the implications of "signing" or implied signatures when making these purchases because the vendors make little money selling licenses and the states are more concerned with collecting the license fees than making sure you read the fine print. I make this as a statement of fact, having worked extensively testing and using the last two systems used in NY (Verizon and Kalkomey).

l have no idea how the OP got into his predicament, but it can be easy to prematurely buy a resident hunting license. Take Idaho for example. If you move there, within 90 days you are expected to apply for an Idaho driver license. According to the Idaho Fish and Game site, this driver's license "proves residency". You might think you are eligible to purchase a resident hunting license immediately. The problem is that Idaho doesn't only require residency - they further qualify it by stating "A resident is anyone who has been domiciled in this state with a bona fide intent to make this their place of permanent abode, for a period of not less than 6 months immediately preceding the date of application for any license, tag or permit." The chances are good that their online system would allow someone with an ID driver's license (but in state less than 6 months) to purchase a resident hunting license.

I have little doubt that there are illegally purchased resident hunting licenses in every state, every year. Some intentional and some not. Everyone is entitled to their day in court and those that end up getting "the hammer" likely knew what they were doing.

 

[stoopiddumbman]

Bowmar is on rokslide now? Makes sense actually.

 

[87TT]

Somebody got Muley Freak's attorney's phone number for this guy.

 

[mtwarden]

one word- Matlock

 

[hunterjmj]

one word- Matlock

He is definitely the best!

 

[Mtns2hunt]

Well after reading this post it appears that the OP has been convicted by the Rokslide Jury.

I cannot fathom why someone would open themselves up to such ridicule by posting his "issue" on a public forum.

This post should be locked in my opinion. Let us all learn from others fallacies.

 

[Mtns2hunt]

You dug up a post from 2 weeks ago, just to recommend that it gets locked?

Dug up? Only two weeks ago? You should look for some other posts I have replied to as some are much older. Yes, I did. Forum members are just basically trashing the guy. I have no idea if his story is legit but chewing over it in a continuously negative fashion is not good for either the PO or members on this forum. Bad ethics (IMO) the forum should be locked. Just my opinion and I feel it should be respected just as I respect yours.

 

[Mtns2hunt]

I guess what I was saying. Is this thread was what, 5 pages pack? And well on its way to be buried by all the other posts. So you bring it back up to the top, just to recommend that it gets locked and therefore buried again.

Surely you see the humor in that?

I am reading many threads as far back as they will take me. A lot of good and interesting information on this forum.

Basically the whole post hit me wrong: seemed as if there was bullying and the comments were inappropriate at times. Plus the OP was not replying making me feel he was regretting posting at all. I have no idea if his situation was true, half true or completely false.

However a two week old post does not seem old to me. I did not know that it brought the post back to the top. Thanks for that information. Yes I can see the humor.

 

[ScreamingPotato]

The bullying and comments stopped two weeks ago, until you brought them back. Lol

 

[Mtns2hunt]

I got it!

 

[CorbLand]

Did OP ever find a lawyer?

 

[mtwarden]

He posted this thread in August

https://rokslide.com/forums/threads/referrals-for-attorney-in-idaho.230294/

and this thread in September, hasn't posted since, he only has 10 posts total

 

[ScreamingPotato]

Maybe never found a good attorney, so now he's in jail and can't post.

 

[SWOHTR]

Maybe self-represented?

And so it begins…much akin to an “Indian summer,” only a forum’s version.

 

[BAKPAKR]

Even if OP doesn’t meet the residency requirements for a hunting license, are there any U.S. Senate vacancies he could be appointed to?

 

[Idaho4x4Bronco]

Moral of the story, Idaho is a horrible place to visit and live. Tell your friends.

 

[PlumberED]

Moral of the story, Idaho is a horrible place to visit and live. Tell your friends.

That’s funny I don’t care who you are.

I am just curious what is the OP’s entire story, seems as though we are missing some pertinent information.

 

[fwafwow]

He a troll

 

[Jweber240]

Wow. Long time sorry guys. I see the true colors of the community come out when you get sucked back into the real world of providing for your family instead of holding a sword and shield for all the keyboard warriors that have left bullying remarks.

As one member stated that I came here not commenting on someone's post but came out in a vulnerable way to the forum to maybe get some help. Was there information missing? Maybe after I read my post a few time to see where some comments were coming from. Someone mentioned me hunting elk with a fishing license.....not sure where that came from please read the whole thing over a couple times and show me where I wrote that cause I couldn't find it. With that little audit it appears some others lack with their reading comprehension as well. To those who have a back bone and stood up for me even just a little...you have my respect.

Shorter story. I bought a house with my wife June 2020. Immediately after closing June 26th, 2020 we went in to the sheriffs office in town to get our drivers licenses started. So whoever mentioned you have 90 days to do that in we did within a day. Also when I got my license issue date was August 5th, 2020 I then waited 6 months as to establish my residency requirements per the F&G regulations for domicile and permanent resident requirements. When I went online to acquire my license and tags when set off their red light to investigate me was that I used my Utah address (where I do contract work) as my mailing address. Used my Challis address as my primary address. My thought in doing that is since I was working in Utah and for the most part being there due to our primary Challis house being under a full inside remodel which started in September, 2020 that if there was any mail correspondence to take care of for whatever reason that intercepting that mail would be better at the mailing address.

When I got the initial call from the local F&G officer he stated that the reason why he called was due to the mailing address. My thoughts were why the hell would you have a primary address and mailing address section on the website when registering your information. Its easy for me to answer. If you have an address other than your primary address then you can and have a right to put in whatever the mailing address is. Could be a Tokyo mailing address for all I am concerned or don't have the mailing address option available. The office admitted that at the time he couldn't put his finger down on why I am potentially defrauding the system and that everything lines up that I am a resident but that he was going to investigate further.

So I have a home out there that is my primary residence. I do try to get back home as much as I can in between work assignments. My homeowners exemption is my Challis home. All my vehicles were registered within two weeks or less from the time the home closed. All utility bills never once turned off and bills were up to date. I also pay income taxes in Idaho along with any other state I work in that has income tax so I get double taxed most of the time. I also vote as a resident of Idaho. Before moving to Challis I had the year previous and previous to that years out of state Utah licenses and tags. To show that I have an understanding that I know when I am a resident or not.

During mediation the judge could only site some case studies as to why I was in the wrong. I felt under represented by my attorney as I was talking the entire time to the judge with no effort from the attorney. At the end I had to plead guilty even after I asked the judge what specific law did I break. He kept bringing up that it is all up to "interpretation." This means that it is open to whoever thinks or feels a certain way about something, not that it is actually correct. The judge said that the officer was able to find out through pining my cell phone location that I was at the home for 40+ days out of the 6 months and understood that we weren't at the house because it was under a full remodel. The judge stated that usually people stay in a camper or trailer during their remodels on the property. I replied to him stating that it didn't make sense for our family situation to do that. We owned a 23ft class b motorhome. To stay out during the harshest times of winter in a season motorhome with a family of 5, pets, and the fact that we homeschool our kids and cook real meals didn't make any sense if we had a secondary home to stay at in UT.

So this whole thing hasn't been sitting well with me. I had spent close to $12,000 fighting a $300+ dollar misdemeanor only because I knew that I did everything right. I stated to the judge that I am honest in everything I do to teach my kids from what is right and wrong. I stated that if I had no internet, smart phone, or computer. Basically live like my recently deceased father did which was no cable, no internet, no cell phone and only a land line that I would do like anyone else would and get the F&G regulations and study it to a "T" about all the non-resident requirements. That I did and internet research and calls to the fish and game office to explain that I was becoming a resident and what did I need to do to satisfy the requirements. Even calling the field office in salmon I as told by the F&G office that it also set off a red flag as well. My only thought is that they never worked with someone trying to be so honest that it sounded like I was lying. The kicker is that the conviction was heavily reliant upon the 40+ days that I was there due to our home remodel. It was said that I was not at my home enough. I stated to the judge that there is nowhere in the regulations that states you need to be at your home for "X" amount of days during the 6 months waiting period. I stated that anyone can read that in the regulations that there is no amount of time you need to be shackled to your primary residence in that 6 months time period. That fell on def hears. It doesn't make sense to me.

So fast forward to the 2024 season. I went into the local fishing shop in town and the owner helped me with a fresh water fishing license. I know my 9 year old boy doesn't need a license but I always think its good to have one since I don't want to be caught handling a fish my boy caught. Just wanted to be legal in all ways. I asked to buy a non-resident license. The owner said that he couldn't legally sell me a non-resident license because my Idaho drivers license was all that he needed to verify residency. I told him I didn't want to get into trouble again and told him the entire story. We also called the F&G field office and I spoke with one woman and told her the whole story and what should I do because I didn't want to purchase a resident license do to the issue I had and wasn't legally able to buy a non-resident as well. The woman confirmed that she seemed to think that I was in the clear and a bon-a-fide resident. She got her manager on the phone and I explained the story to her again. She confirmed that I was a resident and to go ahead and buy a resident fishing license. So I did. no red flags, and no calls so far.


I think that it is wrong that I was convicted of a misdemeanor for wrong class license and then 2 years later told to buy a resident fishing license and that I was a resident to their standards.

Now one thing I have been thinking was that while I was waiting for the 6 months and while we were at our UT location my neighbor contacted me saying a doe had been hit be a car crossing the highway and the F&G are over there in our yard dispatching the deer, in which they just threw the dead doe just adjacent to my driveway. My thought is that the F&G office who called me about the license residency issue was the same officer who dispatched the deer and he thought hmm....maybe this guy is trying to fool us cause he wasn't home when I knocked to put down that doe. I presume he made several drive by attempts to see if I was home. I put up the whole prejudice opinion because We fly an American flag and a Philippines flag on our pool which is my wife's nationality. I was thinking because we were just moved to a new small town that its possible that their is some prejudice. Lets be honest, don't take offense if you're not but I have worked all across the country in small towns and there is always a few. Figured in this day and age it isn't something to be left off the table anymore.

All in all I am sure some of you will criticize me and that's ok. I don't know any of you, so that's not an issue. Just thought I would be a good guy and give more to the story if I left some out. When emotional about a negative subject or experience I get so worked up that I may miss some detail. I firmly think that if the reason for my conviction was due to the number of days I was not at my home within the 6 month wait that it should be clearly stated in the regulations. But based on the regulations guide itself I met all the parameters. I plan to hunt elk next season and if they pull this crap again at least I have the owner of the fishing shop to be witness. Thanks everyone for some of your kind remarks. I am still looking to fight this. One member said it would be expensive. $10-$15k maybe. I spent that fighting a $300+ misdemeanor. I would welcome anyone with great attorneys that have experience in fighting the F&G to send me some referrals. I just think that there is much more to this in terms of wrong doing on their end. Thanks all.