According to information presented in court, Hunter Rainwaters, Cody Brown,
Peyton Mayberry, and Jay Maiden, committed violations involving the illegal
placement of bait to attract waterfowl and taking or attempting to take waterfowl over a
baited area.
The joint investigation was known as Operation Bird Dog. U.S.
Attorney D. Michael Dunavant announced the guilty pleas today.
The area the subjects illegally baited is a TWRA owned and managed Wildlife
Management Area in Benton County, TN. The effects of this baiting on a public waterfowl
hunting area resulted in the closure of a portion of the Wildlife Management Area and the
subsequent loss of hunting opportunity for other hunters in the affected area for the first
ten (10) days of the 2017-2018 waterfowl hunting season.
On September 23, 2019, U.S. Magistrate Court Judge Jon A. York sentenced Rainwaters
to loss of hunting privileges for two years along with $1,000 fine; Mayberry, Brown and
Maiden were each sentenced to loss of hunting privileges for one year along with a $1,000
fine. Additionally, other defendants cited in the case paid a total of $17,680.00 in fines.
U.S. Attorney D. Michael Dunavant said, “The U.S. Attorney’s Office is a full-service
federal prosecution office, and we have the ability and intention to charge any violations
of federal law, no matter where they occur in the Western District of Tennessee. These
prosecutions demonstrate our commitment to upholding the rule of law, and to pursuing
any cases that harm and impact our rural communities. We commend the TWRA and U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service on this successful operation, and appreciate our partnerships
with them.”
This case was investigated by the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency and the United
States Fish and Wildlife Service.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew J. Wilson prosecuted this case on behalf of the
government.