Two hunters accused of shooting a Sandhill Crane said they thought it was a Canada Goose

Two out-of-state hunters have been issued summons to appear in Greene Superior Court on charges of taking a migratory bird after a Jan. 7 incident when they were accused of shooting and killing a Sandhill Crane at Goose Pond Fish and Wildlife Area. 

On Jan. 7, Indiana Conservation Officer Dispatch received a call stating two hunters shot and killed a crane in Unit 10 of Goose Pond Fish and Wildlife Area. The incident was witnessed by a hunter who was in Unit Nine hunting. 

Indiana Conservation Officer Cole Hollingsworth went to the scene to speak with the hunters, later identified as Isaac Strickland of Austin, Texas, and Paul Alexander, of Arlington Heights, Ill.

Alexander, according to the probable cause affidavit, told the officer they shot the crane by accident. They told Officer Hollingsworth the crane was in a decoy bag in the back of the vehicle. When asked who shot the bird, the men allegedly said they both shot at and hit the bird. They alleged this was their first year waterfowl hunting and their fourth time on the property at Goose Pond. 

Hollingsworth asked Strickland and Alexander to step out of the vehicle and show him the crane. According to the probable cause affidavit, Alexander retrieved the decoy bag and dumped it, causing decoys and the crane to fall to the ground. Strickland allegedly admitted to retrieving the crane and said he began “freaking out” because he knew what it was. He said he and Alexander both knew they could not shoot sandhill cranes. Both men allegedly admitted to hiding the crane in the bottom of their decoy bag and placing duck decoys on top.

Prior to their interaction with Officer Hollingsworth, a Department of Natural Resources employee approached them and asked if they knew anything about the crane. At that time, according to the probable cause affidavit, they denied any knowledge of the crane. When asked why they lied, they told Officer Hollingsworth they were panicking and didn’t know what to do. 

Recounting the incident, Strickland told Hollingsworth in an audio-recorded conversation that he and Alexander shot the bird at around 8:30 a.m. on Jan. 7. Hollingsworth noted in the probable cause that at that time, the weather conditions were clear and sunny. Strickland told Hollingsworth he thought the bird was a Canada Goose. The bird was approximately 25 yards away when he and Alexander shot it. Both men’s guns were seized for evidence. 

Hollingsworth wrote in the probable cause that the Sandhill Crane is a federally protected non-game migratory bird in Indiana. There is no hunting season for Sandhill Cranes in Indiana. Hollingsworth noted a Sandhill Crane is much larger in size and height than a Canada Goose. Sandhill Cranes have long legs that trail behind them when they fly, and hunters should be able to differentiate Sandhill Crane from Canada Goose.