A 45-year-old East Valley resident was fined $400 for possession of a bald eagle carcass without a permit.
Stephen Ronald Figueroa was ordered Wednesday to pay $400 to the Nevada Department of Wildlife for possession of the eagle carcass which he claims to have found last August while riding an all-terrain vehicle.
"I picked the bird up to do the right thing with it," Figueroa told East Fork Justice Jim EnEarl.
"I made a mistake, but it was to keep the eagle from getting run over or eaten by coyotes," he said.
Figueroa said he and his wife saw the carcass while they were riding ATVs near the power lines by the Bently ranch.
"She pointed out the bird and when we rode back, it was being eaten by maggots," Figueroa said.
He told the judge he picked up the carcass and took it to his 22-acre property where he immersed it in a tank of antifreeze to kill the maggots.
Figueroa, who owns a construction company, lives on Coyote Road past East Valley near Buckeye Road.
"A Washoe friend was going to perform a ceremony to give it a proper burial," Figueroa said.
Figueroa also was cited for possession of two owl carcasses.
"How do you manage to stumble on so many dead birds of prey?" EnEarl asked.
"When I see them, I pick them up," Figueroa said.
He said he believes he was turned in to officials by an unlicensed tile setter he refused to hire.
"I showed him pictures," Figueroa said.
He admitted he told on himself about the owls when wildlife officials came to investigate the eagle allegation.
"I was just being honest," he said. "I didn't know it was illegal."
He showed EnEarl pictures of bald eagles which visit his property.
"Don't pick up any more eagles," EnEarl said. "You can't have magpies, either."
He told Figueroa after three years, he can petition to have his record sealed if he has no more convictions.
He pleaded guilty to unlawful possession of an eagle.
"We will not be seeing each other again," Figueroa said.
