{"id":1357,"date":"2023-07-09T10:57:31","date_gmt":"2023-07-09T10:57:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/americangunpeople.com\/?p=1357"},"modified":"2023-07-09T10:57:31","modified_gmt":"2023-07-09T10:57:31","slug":"scared-canadian-hiker-shoots-black-bear-in-national-park","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/americangunpeople.com\/?p=1357","title":{"rendered":"“Scared” Canadian Hiker Shoots Black Bear in National Park"},"content":{"rendered":"


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A Canadian man pled guilty on Wednesday to violating a federal hunting restriction in Jasper National Park, CBC News<\/a> reports. The violation stems from an incident that took place in August 2022, when he brought a shotgun into the park and shot a black bear with it.<\/p>\n

Serge Painchaud, a 42-year-old Edmonton resident, claimed in court that he didn\u2019t know it was against the law<\/a> to carry a firearm in a national park. He said he brought the shotgun along and decided to use it because he was \u201cscared.\u201d<\/p>\n

Watch: <\/strong>Whale Nearly Swallows Two Kayakers<\/a><\/p>\n

Justice Rosanna Saccomani soundly rejected this defense and ordered Painchaud to pay a fine of $7,500, or roughly $5,640 USD, within a year. (The prosecuting attorney pushed for heftier fines and a two-year probation on owning firearms, but the court was lenient because Painchaud cooperated and had no criminal record.) \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201c[That] would apply to pretty much every single person in your situation,\u201d Saccomani told Painchaud. \u201cWe\u2019re all afraid of bears.\u201d<\/p>\n

According to court records, Painchaud and two friends set out to hike the Overlander Trail<\/a> on the morning of Aug. 6. He brought a Mossberg Model 510 20 gauge, which he carried loaded and openly on the trail.<\/p>\n

At some point, after crossing paths with several other hikers, Painchaud decided to turn around and hike back alone while his friends continued on. Around 12:15 p.m., he came across a black bear that was roughly 100 feet away on the far side of a creek.<\/p>\n

Painchaud then \u201cbecame scared\u201d and fired a warning shot in the bear\u2019s direction. The bear shuddered and took a few steps forward, at which point Painchaud fired a second shot, striking the bear. The black bear rolled down a bank and ran off into the woods.<\/p>\n

Read Next:<\/strong> Oregon Poacher Wasted Bull Elk Carcass Because He Was Afraid of Wolves<\/a><\/p>\n

One of Painchaud\u2019s friends heard the two shots and called park wardens, who came to investigate. They discovered two empty shotgun shells along with traces of blood at the scene, but the bear was never found.<\/p>\n

\u201cInjured bears can be very aggressive when encountered in close quarters, so any further searches must be approached with extreme caution,\u201d Parks Canada said at the time, pointing out that a wounded black bear is even scarier than a healthy one.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n