Wildlife theives *

TENNESSEE MEN SENTENCED FOR POACHING BEAR
Two men from Tennessee were caught stealing wildlife from the citizens of Colorado--

GLENWOOD SPRINGS, Colo. - Two men from Tennessee were sentenced in Garfield County Court earlier this month for their role in a felony, bear poaching incident in August.

Harley Boss Manley, 51, of Martin, Tenn., pleaded guilty to a charge of killing a black bear before Sept. 1- the start of the fall, bear hunting season. He was given a mandatory five-year suspension of his hunting privileges, a two-year deferred prison sentence for felony willful destruction, forfeit his bow, ordered to pay a fine of $4,000 and donate $6,000 to Operation Game Thief, a Colorado tip line for wildlife infractions. In addition, the Garfield County judge ordered that Manley be placed under supervised probation.

David Ronnie Coleman, 62, of Union City, Tenn., also pleaded guilty to killing a black bear before Sept. 1, and received a mandatory five-year suspension of his hunting privileges. He was fined $3,000 and ordered to donate $4,000 to OGT.

In exchange for their guilty pleas, the judge dropped additional felony charges of tampering with evidence and other misdemeanor charges against both men.

"This was a serious offense these two men committed," said Perry Will, Area Wildlife Manager for Colorado Parks and Wildlife in Glenwood Springs. "It took considerable man-hours and investigation to bring them to justice and my officer is to be commended for his excellent work in this case."