![\"American](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.animals24-7.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/Picsart_25-05-03_18-20-04-186-scaled-e1746321673385.jpg?ssl=1\")
<\/a><\/p>\nAmerican bald eagle. (Beth Clifton photo)<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n HALLWOOD, Virginia<\/strong>\u2013\u2013Who is William Custis Smith,\u00a0 74,\u00a0 of Hallwood,\u00a0 Virginia,\u00a0 population 206,\u00a0 and why did he get away with just one day in jail, \u00a0two years on probation, 50 hours of community service, \u00a0and a fine of $9,800 for allegedly killing at least 20 bald eagles and other birds of prey?<\/p>\n How many raptors has William Custis Smith actually killed?<\/p>\n What we know is that Smith in March 2025 pleaded guilty in U.S. District Count to a single count of unlawfully taking a bald eagle,\u00a0 after having earlier admitted to killing 20-plus with pole traps and poison.<\/p>\n What is also known is that there are approximately 30,250 men named William,\u00a0 Willie,\u00a0 Bill,\u00a0 Billy,\u00a0 and other variants of \u201cWilliam Smith\u201d in the U.S.,\u00a0 around 1,000 of whom live in Virginia,\u00a0 making identification of the alleged eagle and hawk poacher exceptionally difficult.<\/p>\n (Beth Clifton collage)<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n What is further known is that Travis John Branson,\u00a0 49,\u00a0 of \u00a0Cusick, Washington, \u00a0believed to have poached more than 3,600 bald eagles,\u00a0 golden eagles,\u00a0 and hawks of multiple species,\u00a0 was on October 31,\u00a0 2024 sentenced by U.S. District Judge Dana Christensen to serve 46 months in a U.S. federal penitentiary and to pay $777,250 in restitution to the federal government.<\/p>\n (See Biggest ever eagle poaching case: Travis Branson gets 46 months<\/a>.)<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n Branson,\u00a0 fined approximately $213 per bird of prey killed,\u00a0 got off proportionately lighter than William Custis Smith,\u00a0 who was fined $490 per bird of prey he reportedly admitted killing.<\/p>\n But Branson had a pecuniary interest in his killing.<\/p>\n \u201cFrom 2009 until 2021, \u00a0Branson made from $180,000 to $360,000 by selling eagle feathers and parts for profit, \u00a0the government estimated,\u201d\u00a0 reported\u00a0Daily Montanan<\/em>\u00a0deputy editor Keila Szpaller when Branson was sentenced.<\/p>\n (Beth Clifton collage)<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n William Custis Smith apparently killed birds of prey just so he could kill more ducks.<\/p>\n The William Custis Smith case came to light when on May 27,\u00a0 2025 the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources \u201cannounced the conclusion of what it called a months-long investigation into the illegal killing of numerous bald eagles and hawks on the Eastern Shore,\u201d\u00a0 reported Sean Curtis of WBOC television in Salisbury,\u00a0 Maryland.<\/p>\n \u201cThe investigation began during the 2023-2024 waterfowl season,\u201d\u00a0 Curtis said,\u00a0 when the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources \u201creceived an anonymous tip about a pole trap located near a waterfowl impoundment in Hallwood owned by William Custis Smith.<\/p>\n \u201cPole traps are used to attract birds of prey to land and then ensnare them,\u201d\u00a0 Curtis explained.<\/p>\n \u201cUpon locating the pole trap,\u201d\u00a0 Curtis continued, \u00a0\u201cinvestigators say they discovered the body of a juvenile bald eagle.\u201d<\/p>\n Red-tailed hawk.<\/strong><\/em> Virginia Conservation Police master officer Brian Bratton sent the remains to the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Forensic Laboratory for toxicological testing.<\/p>\n \u201cInvestigators then set up cameras near the pole trap to potentially record any future raptor kills,\u201d\u00a0 narrated Curtis.\u00a0 \u201cAccording to court documents obtained by WBOC, \u00a0subsequent visits to change out the camera\u2019s memory cards and batteries revealed dead animals in the area.<\/p>\n \u201cOn one occasion, investigators said they noticed a pile of fish heads nearby surrounded by dead flies.<\/p>\n \u201cA video recording captured on February 19, 2023, showed a red-tailed hawk becoming ensnared in the pole trap, \u00a0court documents read. \u00a0Investigators said the bird struggled for hours before Smith was recorded bludgeoning the bird to death.\u201d<\/p>\n (Beth Clifton photo)<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n Eventually the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service confirmed that the dead juvenile bald eagle picked up Virginia Conservation Police master officer Brian Bratton had been poisoned with carbofuran.<\/p>\n A neurotoxic farm pesticide formerly marketed as Furadan, \u00a0carbofuran was banned by the Environmental Protection Agency in 2009, \u00a0but remains easily and cheaply available in much of the world.<\/p>\n \u201cThis particular poison acts so quickly that nine times out of 10 when an eagle, \u00a0hawk or whatever eats something [laced with carbofuran], \u00a0it acts so quickly that the bird dies with whatever the bird was eating still in the bird\u2019s claws,\u201d \u00a0Bratton told media.<\/p>\n Summarized Curtis,\u00a0 \u201cFinally, \u00a0on March 31, 2023, \u00a0investigators interviewed William Custis Smith. Authorities said in their report that Smith freely admitted to using the pole trap and to poisoning fish heads with carbofuran to kill in excess of 20 bald eagles and hawks, \u00a0mostly red-shouldered hawks and red-tailed hawks.\u201d<\/p>\n (Beth Clifton photo)<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n Said Bratton via the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources website,\u00a0 \u201cWe were fairly familiar with the guy. \u00a0We\u2019d dealt with him before on some waterfowl violations.\u00a0 He showed us what was going on and told us what he was doing and why he was doing it.<\/p>\n \u201cHe was killing the hawks and eagles because they were killing all the ducks he was attracting to his impoundment. \u00a0It was the time of year when hawks are migrating through. \u00a0And in very late winter, \u00a0the food supply really gets short, \u00a0so these birds are looking for prey.<\/p>\n \u201cHe was very aware it was illegal,\u201d\u00a0 Bratton acknowledged, \u00a0\u201cbut in his mind, \u00a0the ends justified the means, \u00a0because he was getting rid of the predatory birds to protect the ducks.\u201d<\/p>\n So maybe William Custis Smith got away with just one day in jail as a duck-hunting good old boy.<\/p>\n \u201cThat many hawks and eagles is pretty significant,\u201d\u00a0 Bratton assessed, \u00a0\u201cso I feel like it\u2019s a win for protecting the resource from further loss.\u201d<\/p>\n (Beth Clifton collage)<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n Disagreed Wayne Pacelle, \u00a0president of Animal Wellness Action and the Center for a Humane Economy,\u00a0 \u201cA one-day sentence for killing 20 bald eagles and hawks is no deterrent at all for people who disregard our wildlife protection and conservation laws. \u00a0This is a pathetic response to a serious case of poaching and cruelty.<\/p>\n \u201cProsecutors and judges must do better,\u201d\u00a0 Pacelle opined,\u00a0 pledging that \u201cAnimal Wellness Action is urging the U.S. Department of Justice and lawmakers to revisit enforcement standards and sentencing guidelines for wildlife crimes.<\/p>\n \u201cStronger penalties and consistent prosecution are essential,\u201d\u00a0 Pacelle said, \u00a0\u201cto deter future violations and to honor the public\u2019s investment in species recovery and conservation.\u201d<\/p>\n (Beth Clifton collage)<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n Part of the story behind the story is that similar carbofuran poisonings of bald eagles and other raptors have been frequent along the Eastern Shore for more than a decade.<\/p>\n Donna Cole of WNAV radio in Annapolis in 2016 became aware of seven similar cases,\u00a0 going back to 2013.\u00a0 Gathering information from retired U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Special Agent Frank Kuncir, \u00a0a 32-year wildlife crime investigator,\u00a0 Cole used Freedom of Information Act requests to document the carbofuran poisonings of 18 bald eagles, \u00a0a raccoon and a fox.<\/p>\n Cole and Washington Post<\/em> reporter Dana Hedgpeth exposed the poisoning in 2018.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is illegal to use carbofuran,\u201d\u00a0 wrote Hedgpeth, \u00a0\u201cbut even though stores\u00a0are banned from selling the pesticide, \u00a0some people still have it stored and\u00a0use it.\u201d<\/p>\n And bootleg it in from duck hunting destinations in Latin America,\u00a0 notably Mexico and Argentina.<\/p>\nSentence raises questions & eyebrows<\/em><\/span><\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\nWashington state perp got almost four years<\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\nJust so he could kill more ducks<\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n
(Beth Clifton photo)<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\nRed-tailed hawk was victim too<\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\nCarbofuran<\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n\u201cWe were fairly familiar with the guy\u201d<\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n\u201cA one-day sentence is no deterrent at all\u201d<\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\nCarbofuran banned but still accessible<\/h2>\n