Wisconsin Poacher Who “Made a Game” of Killing Over 150 Deer Gets Jail Time

Farming is tough work, especially when you are fighting against more than just Mother Nature. Given the destructive nature excessive deer can have on a farming operation, most state DNRs allow for agricultural damage permits that allow hunters to remove a certain amount of deer from their property.

In a system that is perfectly legal and seems to do the trick for the majority of farmers across the nation, there are some, unfortunately, who take things a little too far.

In a story coming out of Wisconsin, one Dairyland farmer has been handed his fate after illegally killing over 150 deer between 2020 and 2021. According to investigators, 61-year-old Dominick R. Stanek “made a game” of killing the deer and was eventually found out and brought to justice.

On the surface it looked as though Stanek was keeping things above-board with his ag permits, but neighbors eventually started to hear and see things they found to be concerning to say the least. As shots rang out at all hours of the night, neighbors, alarmed by what they perceived as excessive and unethical hunting practices, reported Stanek to wildlife officials. Alleging that Stanek was not only exceeding the limitations stipulated in his permit but was also employing illegal hunting methods to do so, they urged wildlife officials to come have a closer look.

Responding to the complaints, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) launched an investigation into Stanek's activities. They discovered that Stanek was shooting deer from his vehicle at night using a spotlight, a practice that is both illegal and unsafe. As a result of this initial investigation, Stanek was cited and fined. However, the penalties did not deter him, and he continued to gamify his illegal killing spree.

The DNR then went ahead and initiated a more extensive criminal investigation that took place over a two year period. During this time, Stanek accumulated a staggering 27 citations for various wildlife violations. After shooting deer on his property, they were often left to waste and wardens soon discovered numerous rotting deer carcasses while local residents reported seeing injured deer struggling on and around his land.

When a search warrant was executed on Stanek's property, wardens found a large number of spent brass casings. Stanek admitted that he had marked the casings with the distance of the shot, indicating that he had turned the killing of deer into a macabre game of sorts.

In addition to the illegal deer hunting, Stanek was also cited for using poison to kill animals that he believed might also be eating his crops. Wardens found the carcasses of various animals,  including dead opossum and raccoons just steps away from the poison, with vomit coming from their mouths.

Throughout the investigation, Stanek was defiant and  uncooperative with wardens, showing no remorse for his actions. He seemed to believe that he had the right to do whatever he wanted on his land, regardless of the law or the ethical considerations. He continued to shoot deer even after being cited and fined multiple times, emboldening DNR officials to gather enough proof to put him away.

The DNR used various investigative techniques to gather evidence against Stanek, including surveillance and video footage of him shooting deer at night. Stanek's brother also admitted to shooting deer on the property but was not cited due to a lack of sufficient evidence.

Eventually, Stanek ended up pleading guilty to 14 of the 27 charges against him. He was fined $27,416, sentenced to four months in jail, and placed on probation for three years. Additionally, he was stripped of his hunting, fishing, and trapping privileges for 42 years.