KALAMAZOO, Mich — A Kalamazoo man admitted to Michigan conservation officers he wasn't the most ethical hunter and now he's facing a slew of hunting violations.
Scott Kevin Meisterheim, 55, was arraigned in court earlier this month on 10 charges:
- Taking white-tailed deer outside of lawful hunting hours (one count).
- Hunting white-tailed deer with no license (two counts).
- Uses the deer hunting licenses of another (two counts).
- Taking an overlimit of antlered white-tailed deer (two counts).
- Transporting/possessing untagged antlered white-tailed deer (three counts).
“This is an excellent investigation of a poacher who shows no respect for the resource or the ethics of fair chase,” said Chief Dave Shaw, DNR Law Enforcement Division.
“Violations of this type deprive law-abiding people of their opportunity to have access to and enjoy a public trust natural resource, in this case white-tailed deer.”
DNR officers also requested additional charges for illegal bait, failing to immediately validate/attach kill tags and using another hunter's license.
The investigation began in February 2022 when someone called the poaching tipline.
Conservation Officer James Nason, who patrols Kalamazoo County, investigated a series of tips.
He started by interviewing several witnesses who had information about Meisterheim’s alleged illegal hunting from October to December 2021.
Conservation officers allege Meisterheim took at least 11 deer from Oct. 1 to Dec. 24, 2021, including three deer alone on Oct. 1.
He told investigators he believed he was "tagged out" the first week of archery season.
Within three days, investigators said he let two deer spoil, as they were rejected by the processor due to their condition.
DNR Officer Nason interviewed Meisterheim at the Kalamazoo County Jail, where Meisterheim was lodged at the time for domestic abuse.
“Sure, I love to kill deer,” Meisterheim said. “If I could kill more I would, to be honest with you.”
Meisterheim was hunting without a license during all hours of the day all while using illegal bait. He is also accused of taking other people's deer tags to cover his illegal deer, if he even tagged them at all.
Conservation Officer Nason said Meisterheim also told him he “is not the most ethical hunter, tagging other people’s deer, but I don’t care – I am addicted to the venison.”
In explaining why he was in possession of so many deer, Meisterheim also claimed that injured deer would stumble and die near his hunting location.
Meisterheim also hunted several properties where he did not have permission, including in Kalamazoo and Van Buren counties.
Meisterheim is currently serving 18 months of probation for aggravated domestic assault in Kalamazoo County. He is due back in court for the DNR charges in February.
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