North Carolina Hunting Couple Featured on Drury Outdoors Dream Season Face Multiple Game Charges
Skinny Moose 04.03.12
Editor’s note: Drury Outdoors has produced an official response to this incident. See the bottom of the article for the full text.
Jason and Britney Edney of Henderson NC have been charged with multiple game violations according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Nebraska;
Jason W. Edney age 35, and Britney J. Edney, age 29, both of Hendersonville, North Carolina, were charged with interstate transportation of an unlawfully killed deer. In Count I, Jason W. Edney is charged with the unlawful possession and transportation in interstate commerce from Nebraska to North Carolina of parts of an adult mule deer buck on or about September 25, 2009. Jason W. Edney did not have a valid Nebraska Hunting License. The maximum penalty for this count charged to Jason W. Edney is 1 year of imprisonment, a fine of $100,000, 1 year of supervised release, and a $100 special assessment. Counts II and III of the indictment charge both Jason W. and Britney J. Edney with unlawful possession and transportation in interstate commerce from Nebraska to South Carolina on or about November 5, 2009, and December 17, 2009, respectively, parts of an adult white-tailed deer buck. Neither Jason W. or Britney J. Edney were in possession of a valid Nebraska Hunting License. The maximum penalty for these counts charged to Jason W. and Britney J. Edney is 1 year of imprisonment, a fine of $100,000, 1 year of supervised release, and a $100 special assessment. Counts IV and V of the indictment charge Jason W. Edney with the sale and purchase of parts of an adult white-tailed deer buck, as well as, unlawful possession and transportation of said deer from Nebraska to North Carolina on or about October 13, 2010, and December 16, 2010, respectively. Jason W. Edney was not in possession of a valid Nebraska Hunting License. The maximum penalty for Counts IV and V charged to Jason W. Edney is 5 years of imprisonment, a fine of $250,000, 3 years of supervised release, and a $100 special assessment.
Jason & Britney were featured on Drury Outdoors Dream Season 4, the show pitted couples from across the country competing in filming their hunts. They also run a hunting lodge operation “Fur & Feather” in Nebraska that has been featured on Drury Outdoors.
httpv://youtu.be/abpCBKwVgFQ
Now let’s remember this is only a grand jury indictment to charge and not a conviction. I can’t help but notice that the press release notes a deer killed on or around September 25, 2009 and this deer posted with a story on Drury Outdoors on the September 27, 2009.
It had been a couple of days since we blew him out of the field but I figured he still had to be close. After a few hours of glassing I got lucky and stumbled on to him lying in his bed above the alfalfa. Everything was perfect for a stalk instead of letting him come to me so I started making my way to him. With any evening stalk the thought stayed in my mind that he was going to get up on his feet any minute and head to the field. Luckily though he stayed in his bed and I was inching within striking distance. I slowed to a snails pace because of the lack of cover but this time the stars aligned and I was within 30 yds of him in his bed. As I was preparing for the shot..up he came and bolted a few yards, but as a lot of mule deer do he had to stop and see what crawled up on him. That’s when the Bow Madness XL preformed flawlessly! In open country you need to take advantage of every opportunity when they present themselves even if that means stretching the yardage out farther than typical whitetail shot. It was a great feeling to watch the arrow sink into the spot and watch the buck fall.
The next deer listed is November 5th 2009;
With nothing to lose I started hitting him with a grunt pretty hard. To my disbelief he turned on a dime and headed my way! The buck had a total attitude change and he was coming in to rip whoever was in there! I have to admit I panicked a little because I guess I figured he was going to just walk off like so many other buck have this week. When he got to 20 yds he checked up and turned to get a better look and that is when I made my shot. Well the shot was not perfect but I have to admit no practice will make you ready for that situation! The pro’s you see on TV make it look easy but standing on a 20” platform with that much adrenalin changes everything! After a long night and a long trailing job I found him and couldn’t be happier! Now its time to use my other tag on the drop tine deer!
I’m in no way saying these are for sure the deer in question just that I found it odd they match up with the dates in the press release from the US District Attorney. I should also point out there was no deer posted that matched up with the December date. Additionally I’m not saying the Drury’s or Drury Outdoors has done anything wrong just that a lot of the information comes off their site and they clearly have a connection with Jason & Britney Edney prior to the hunts in question and recently with turkey hunts at Fur & Feather Outfitters.
I don’t get it, if the charges are true it means they didn’t have Nebraska hunting licenses? That doesn’t make any sense. I’m pretty careful to make sure I have my hunting license and my tags on my person before I head out. It’s not like these folks were hunting in an unusual place, they own a hunting lodge in Nebraska and did so for years before this crime was alleged to take place.
We’ll continue to keep following this story and see how it develops…
Editor’s note: Drury Outdoors has sent Outdoor Hub an official response to the incident, reproduced verbatim below:
Drury Outdoors has become aware of criminal charges being brought against Jason & Britney Edney claiming violations of Federal Gaming Laws. We have a passion for hunting and a deep appreciation for the conservation of our Natural Resources and the laws meant to protect them. While the Edneys have appeared in past production’s on a limited basis, their materials are not being used in current projects. Drury Outdoors takes these matters very seriously and will continue to promote the dignity and values of the sport we love.
-Mark & Terry Drury
This article was originally posted on the Moose Droppings blog.
