JACKSON — The act of spotlighting deer in Mississippi is a Class 1 offense which leads to thousands of dollars in fines and the revocation of hunting and fishing license privileges. A couple of convicted spotlighters affirmed the act was not worth the penalty Wednesday. 

Col. Jerry Carter, Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks, brought three young men up to face the MDWFP commission Wednesday to tell their story in the official license reinstatement requests. Each young man did have his license reinstated but it was not easy.

Preston Langley of Itawamba County was the first young man to request his hunting and fishing license privileges be reinstated. Carter said on February 5, 2023, officers received a call about illegal activity from a citizen who witnessed a violation and proceeded to follow the car. The citizen was able to get the tag information and an officer proceeded with the investigation. 

Langley said that day they were going fishing and he had grabbed a .22 rifle from the house in case he and his buddies came across some wild hogs. He said he came upon a field full of deer and shot one of the deer. He left and went home and a vehicle followed them home. An MDWFP officer showed up at the residence about 45 minutes later. 

One commissioner asked him if he had ever done that before. 

“Yes, two deer at night. Same kind of situation,” Langley said. “That buddy he does it all the time. I don’t hang out with him anymore.” 

A commissioner asked what the buddy’s name was. Langley replied saying that person was in prison now. To get his license back, it cost $2,000 and time to retake hunters education. 

“It is not worth it. As for why people do it, mainly for the meat. I will tell others what we have learned,” Langley said. 

Auston Armstrong of Grenada County was next to step up before the commission. Carter said the violation occurred on Nov. 24, 2021. An officer called his supervisor to come to the scene and question him. 

Armstrong said there were no excuses for what he did. His friends who had farms did brag about shooting deer at night but that night he went out looking for hogs and coyotes with his AR. His friends told him he couldn’t shoot a deer with a long range shot using the AR and two shots later he had dropped the deer. He intended to clean the deer for the meat but the situation went downhill.

“I got mixed up in some family drama. They started cussing me out so I dropped my friends off and sat there for two hours,” Armstrong said. “They confiscated my gun.”

Commissioners asked him if he had ever hunted deer illegally at night before. He said he had not and he actually does not hunt deer anymore because he is allergic to deer hair. The commission voted to reinstate his license. 

Austin Curtis of Pontotoc County was the last person to speak. Carter said Oct. 5, 2021 was the date of violation for Curtis. An officer noticed a vehicle shining a light into a field and turned his blue lights on which led to a pursuit before the vehicle eventually stopped. 

“I don’t know where to start. A couple of buddies and I were driving around. I had a brand new Savage .17 HMR and was looking for something to shoot,” Curtis said. “I turned my light on and didn’t see anything in the field and then I saw the blue lights. I realized I made the wrong decision. They got me and my buddy and we went to jail. I got five different tickets, $5,000 in fines and six days in jail. I had a three year suspension from my license.”

Commissioners asked him if he was specifically looking for deer. Curtis said he was really looking for coyotes. Commissioner William Mougner told Curtis to educate his friends and reminded him that someone could have been walking in the field at night. Curtis was reinstated. 

Carter thanked citizens and his officers. 

“A lot of these cases were made through landowners and the public. They help us with apprehending violators,” Carter said. “We appreciate our officers for enforcing these laws.”

People can report a potential hunting or fishing violation or suspicious activity by calling 1-800-BE-SMART. They can also report a violation online by filling out a report.