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DA to be sentenced in G&F license case - by Jami Badershall
This document was published online on Monday, September 13, 2004
The ruling in a Cody case against a Salt Lake City District Attorney is not yet final.
Circuit Court Judge Bruce Waters is waiting for a proposed order from Hot Springs County Attorney Dan Caldwell in the case of Vincent Meister, who hunted and fished with resident licenses 1992-2001 while he was living and working in Utah.
Caldwell is handling the case because of a conflict of interest within the Park County Attorney's office.
Meister was originally charged with 22 counts of false swearing to procure resident hunting and fishing licenses. Using his parent's Cody address, he obtained six resident fishing licenses and eight elk, seven deer and one black bear resident hunting license. He faced $750 in fines and six months in jail for each of those 22 counts.
Although not finalized, the charges have been amended to change 10 counts to taking certain game animals without a license or during a closed season. And three charges could be amended to fishing without a proper license. He could have been fined $400 and jailed six months for each of those counts. Caldwell suggested the counts not amended be dismissed with prejudice.
Caldwell originally suggested $5,000 in fines and no incarceration time in return for a guilty or no contest plea to all counts.
Meister pleaded no contest Thursday as part of a conditional plea agreement and was to pay $4,750 in restitution. He reserved his right to appeal. But there was a question as to whether Meister should pay the restitution now or wait because he intends to appeal and might have to be refunded the money if the case goes to District Court and he is found not guilty.
That determination will be part of Caldwell's final order as well. If Meister's attorney accepts the final order, the case will be concluded until it's possibly appealed. If it is not approved, then there will be another hearing.
In court Thursday, there was also a motion to reconsider a ruling that denied the motion to dismiss the case. Judge Waters had previously denied the motion, and Meister returned to court with an 18-page statement, which included new evidence from the Game and Fish Department.
Meister was cited by game warden Craig Sax, who found Meister fishing with a Wyoming license but saw that he had an ATV with Utah plates on Aug. 2, 2001.
Reading his statement in court, Meister said he and Sax talked for 45 minutes about the problems with statutes regarding the definitions of residency and domicile.
"I finally asked Sax what he wanted me to do," Meister said. "He said I could continue to fish. He couldn't say I was in violation."
He added that during the previous motion hearing Sax said it was because of "professional courtesy" that he didn't cite Meister at the time.
Meister said he was originally told by Game and Fish he could buy resident licenses.
"I originally established residency in Wyoming by being domiciled in Wyoming 31 years prior to leaving the state for the temporary or special purpose of employment," he said.
He has been employed with the Salt Lake District Attorney's office since 1991.
Waters again denied the motion.
He said Meister moved from Wyoming to Utah and is employed full-time, bought a house, lives, raises a family, licenses his vehicles and has a Utah driver's license.
"That's where he lives and works," Waters said. "That's not a special or temporary thing."
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