KALAMAZOO (WWJ) -- A Kalamazoo man facing slew of hunting violations from the Department of Natural Resources admits he’s “not the most ethical hunter.”
Scott Kevin Meisterheim, 55, was in court on Wednesday for a pretrial hearing related to illegal deer hunting.
The Michigan DNR is seeking charges against Meisterheim for 10 violations, which include:
-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)
Additionally, the DNR requested charges against Meisterheim for illegal bait, failing to immediately validate/attach kill tags and using another’s (hunting) license.
An investigation revealed that Meisterheim took at least 11 deer from Oct. 1 through Dec. 24, 2021, including three deer on Oct. 1 alone.
He also had two deer rejected by a processor after letting them spoil over the course of three days.
Meanwhile, Meisterheim had apparently been hunting during all hours of the day while using illegal bait, and all without a hunting license.
He also hunted at several properties where he did not have permission, including in Kalamazoo and Van Buren counties.
Conservation Officer James Nason interviewed Meisterheim at the Kalamazoo County Jail, where he was being housed following charges of domestic abuse.
“Sure, I love to kill deer,” Meisterheim told Nason. “If I could kill more I would, to be honest with you.”
He added that he “is not the most ethical hunter, tagging other people’s deer, but I don’t care – I am addicted to the venison.”
Currently, Meisterheim is serving 18 months’ probation for aggravated domestic assault in Kalamazoo County.
He is set to be back in court in February to face the hunting charges from the DNR.
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