Yellowstone bison protest case may go to trial

The case of a Colorado man who protested the slaughter of bison migrating from Yellowstone National Park may be heading to trial after he rejected a proposed plea bargain Tuesday during his initial appearance at the Yellowstone Justice Center in Mammoth Hot Springs.

Appearing before U.S. District Judge Mark Carman, the protester, 20-year-old Comfrey Jacobs, turned down a deal that would have required a guilty plea, $1,000 restitution, five years probation, and a ban on entering Yellowstone Park for five years.

Jacobs, formerly of Grand Junction, Colo., and currently living in West Yellowstone, Mont. chained himself to a cement-filled drum the morning of March 6, blocking the road to the Stephens Creek bison capture facility north of Gardiner, Mont. to stall the shipment of bison to slaughter.

Jacobs is awaiting further legal advice prior to his arraignment, scheduled for April 2, as he decides whether he wants his case to go to trial, according to a statement from the Buffalo Field Campaign of West Yellowstone, a bison advocacy group opposed to the slaughtering of bison.

Jacobs faces charges of disorderly conduct, entering a closed area, and interference. Prosecutors in the case will not seek jail time, according to court records.

 

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