On October 7, 2025, a court sentenced hunter Cory Lawrence to pay a $10,000 fine to the Cooperative Endangered Species Conservation Fund. Lawrence pleaded guilty to violating the Endangered Species Act for killing a grizzly bear (16 U.S.C. §§ 1538(a)(1)(G), 1540(b)(1)).

On May 16, 2023, Lawrence shot and killed a grizzly bear near Berray Mountain in Sanders County, Montana. Lawrence did not report the killing to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) within five days of the killing, as required.

FWS learned of the killing days later when a citizen reported finding the carcass. Investigators identified Lawrence as the likely culprit and contacted him at his home in Utah, where he admitted to killing the bear and failing to report it.

FWS Office of Law Enforcement conducted the investigation. 

Source: US DOJ