Lawmakers have reintroduced a proposal that would allow judges to order poachers to pay restitution fees ranging from $375 to $5,000.
Two identical bills filed in the Missouri House and Senate could gain more traction this year considering three recent cases in which elk were illegally killed. Under the proposed legislation, the fees vary depending on whether poachers are convicted for illegally killing deer, elk, black bears, turkeys or paddlefish. A bill seeking the same restitution fees passed the House last year but died in a Senate committee.
