Story by SCOTT SONNER as it appears at RGJ.com
Proves that “Boneheads” Cannot be Taught New Tricks
Joshua Keathley and Todd Davis ~ Washoe County Jail File Photo
Two Nevada men called “boneheads” by a U.S. judge when he sentenced them to six months in prison for shooting federally protected mustangs may be headed back behind bars for illegal trapping.
Joshua Keathley and Todd Davis are scheduled to appear in a Washoe County justice court March 21 on a misdemeanor citation for failure to visit steel leg-hold traps within 96 hours — a state law intended to help minimize the suffering of animals whose feet are snared in the spring-loaded, metal jaws.
If they plead guilty, the two Lovelock men face a penalty of up to $192 each in fines and court costs, state wildlife officials said. More serious is the possibility they could be found to have violated the terms of their parole.
“We have notified the feds and have been cooperating with them,” Chris Healy, spokesman for the Nevada Department of Wildlife, told The Associated Press.
Natalie Collins, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Las Vegas, confirmed federal parole violation charges are pending against the men but said she could not comment further because the charges were sealed.
The men are scheduled to appear on “revocation proceedings” in federal court in Reno on April 18 before U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert McQuaid Jr., court records show.
McQuaid is the same judge who berated them when he sentenced them for the November 2009 killing of five wild horses after they admitted they had been drinking and used the animals for target practice.
“I keep thinking about it, and I keep coming back to the senselessness of it,” McQuaid said at the sentencing Nov. 3, 2010. “Drunken and boneheaded is not an excuse.”
Daniel Bogden, U.S. attorney for Nevada, said at the time his office was swamped with as many as 8,000 e-mails from “all over the world” urging maximum prosecution of the two men.
The chief prosecutor, Assistant U.S. Attorney Sue Fahami, said one of the most “disturbing and ”cold-hearted“ parts of the crime was the shooters’ total disregard for the animals after they were shot and left to die.
”Any hunter knows that when you go hunting, you want a clean shot“ that kills the animal quickest, Fahami said.
John Springgate, a Reno lawyer for Keathley in the horse killing case, confirmed he would represent him in the federal proceeding but declined further comment. Todd Plimpton, a Lovelock lawyer for Davis, did not immediately respond to emails or telephone calls.
Davis, 45, and Keathley, 37, completed their prison terms last May but remain on probation through May 10, 2012, Collins said.
Last month, they were in the high desert about 25 miles northwest of Gerlach — not far from where they had shot the horses — when a state game warden caught up with them and cited them for a trapping violation.
Wildlife officials, aided by a special agent for the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, determined it had been seven days since the two men had checked their trap line.
No animals were found in the traps, which could be used to capture bobcats, foxes or other small animals. Some animals left in traps for long periods of time have been known to gnaw off legs to escape.
State trapping laws are hard to compare because of variations in seasonal wildlife populations, but Nevada’s requirement that traps be checked every 96 hours — four days — is one of the most lax in the nation, according to a recent report by the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies.
More than half the states require leg traps be checked daily and another dozen require visits every 72 hours, said the association’s most recent summary of trapping regulations for fur harvesting in the United States in 2007.
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Categories: Horse News, Wild Burros, Wild Horses/Mustangs
Straight from the Horse's Heart 
The judge call this one right… “Two Boneheads” they must think they are above the law…
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What stupid, stupid men. So by this judge’s opinion what label or descriptions would he call the BLM or the heliciopter operator’s who kill the same horses?
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EXACTLY JT EXACTLY I know what should;d be done with them also !!!!!
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Just goes to show that Nevada does not care about the animals!
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This kind of senseless cruel mentality must be dealt with to the full extent of the Law !!!{People like this are a threat to society , when people do this kind of horror the need to be removed from society, i feel that they are not only a danger to all the animals but they are a danger to people also… These two somehow never learned to appreciate the beauty that surrounds them,and commonsense to use horses for target practice is not only unacceptable behavior ,but also i fear for the safety people and children …………….
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Calling them “Boneheads” is putting it mildly. Furthermore, Nevada’s requirement of traps being checked every 4 days is a disgrace. The law should be up-dated to a more reasonable amount of time, as allowed and followed by other states.
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Give the two boneheads exactly the same treatment that they gave to the animals. It won’t take back the hours and days of suffering the tortured animals endured before their deaths but maybe it will show other boneheads what could happen to them and will prevent other animals from being tortured.
Spoken by a normally sweet, peaceful and non-violent Grandma.
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This kind need immediate removal, i wouldnt even ask for help for them, i am sick of these kinds of people , i have no patience left , they gave those horses none !!! I am ashamed of them……………….If i was the Judge I would put them away forever……………………. When will they all learn that the animals are so precious and have so much to give to us, what has to be done to get the message into there thick uneducated brains………………….. I detest plain stupidity like that……….
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Well I think the Judge called it right when he called them boneheads. Unless they go off to some kind of Federal prison there’ll be forced to cut these boneheads loose due to overcrowding and budget constraints.
Don’t know if you need a license to do trapping but these guys sure seem bent on screwing things up for themselves. Someone needs to step in and not only do an intervention but an attitude adjustment with these “boys”.
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I don’t think Boneheads is a suitable description for these morons. I feel unless there are very serious consequences to all the killings, these Dregs of Society will always find some lawyers to defend them. They have no compassion for any animals and I suppose if you looked further into their lives, no regard for other humans either. They need to be locked away for a long time. It is just disgusting..They should be tortured just like they did the animals..
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