Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

Utah Hunting Guide Charged With Felony For 'Baiting' Bear That Don Jr. Hunted Down And Killed In 2018

Utah Hunting Guide Charged With Felony For 'Baiting' Bear That Don Jr. Hunted Down And Killed In 2018
@donaldtrumpjr/Instagram

A Utah hunting guide is facing felony charges for laying illegal bait for a bear that Donald Trump Jr. shot and killed on a big game hunt in 2018.

The Salt Lake Tribunereported that hunting guide Wade Lemon was charged in Davis County last week, mere days before the statute of limitations expired. He faces a potential five-year prison sentence.


Charging documents allege that Lemon, who is 61, "personally guided a client on a successful bear hunt" in Carbon County on May 18, 2018.

The documents say that a "concerned witness" contacted authorities after spotting "a pile of grain, oil, and pastries" in the area after the hunting party had left. The witness said they noticed the party had hunting dogs with them.

Agents with the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources (DNR) confirmed that there was half-eaten bait in front of a trail camera sporting Lemon's phone number and initials. Additionally, the agents confirmed there was straw, which is often used to line the cages of hunting dogs, on a nearby road.

According to prosecutors:

"The end of the hunt is recorded showing the bear surrounded by a pack of hunting dogs before the client shoots and kills the animal."
"Utah law forbids luring bears to a bait station and then pursuing the animal with dogs."

Lemon's sub-guides told investigators that they knew the bear was baited to the area where it was ultimately killed, and one in particular said Lemon told him to "get stuff out there" just two weeks before the scheduled hunt.

The Utah Investigative Journalism Project and The Salt Lake Tribune were able to confirm that Trump Jr. was the client on the hunt that day despite the fact that the charging documents do not list Trump Jr. as the client.

The Tribune confirmed that Trump Jr. killed two animals–the bear on May 18, 2018 and a cougar on May 19–and noted that Lemon had posted photos with Trump Jr. on May 21, 2018.

In his Facebook post, Lemon, through his company Wade Lemon Hunting, brags that he and Trump are joining forces to launch "Hunter Nation," a conservative organization with aims to "educate the public regarding hunting, wildlife, and habitat."

Trump Jr. also boasted about the trip on Instagram, saying that he'd had a "great weekend in Utah with friends outdoors."

The Tribune reported that Davis County Attorney Troy Rawlings referred to the then-unidentified Trump Jr. in the charging documents as "actually a victim and a now a possible witness in a fraudulent scheme to lead the hunter to believe it was actually a legitimate Wild West hunting situation."

However, the newspaper notes in its report that DNR confirmed that "the well-known guide, didn’t pull the trigger — Donald Trump Jr. did."

The news quickly went viral and both Lemon and Trump Jr. have been heavily criticized.













Trump Jr. has courted controversy for big-game hunting expeditions before.

In 2016, during their father's presidential campaign, Trump Jr. and his brother, Eric Trump, were heavily criticized after pictures emerged of the animals they’d killed on safari.

The two men posed for photos with a slain civet as well as an elephant and a leopard that they had killed.

In 2019, Trump Jr. made headlines again, this time for traveling to Western Mongolia and shooting and killing an argali, an animal that has the distinction of being the largest sheep in the world while also holding a place on the endangered species list.

Trump Jr.'s trip to Mongolia racked up $76,859.36 in Secret Service fees, which is $60,000 more than the Trump administration had previously disclosed.

More from Trending

Jasmine Crockett Calls Out Trump's Hypocrisy By Pointing Out How Melania Got Her Visa
Leigh Vogel/Getty Images for SiriusXM; Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images

Jasmine Crockett Calls Out Trump's Hypocrisy By Pointing Out How Melania Got Her Visa

Texas Democratic Representative Jasmine Crockett pointed out President Donald Trump's hypocrisy on immigration considering how First Lady Melania Trump's pathway to citizenship was possible because she received an "Einstein visa," which is usually reserved for an individual with "some sort of significant achievement."

Speaking during a House Judiciary Committee hearing titled “Restoring Integrity and Security to the Visa Process,” Crockett noted that “the idea that Trump and my Republican colleagues want to restore integrity and security in the visa process is actually a joke," and harshly criticized the Trump administration's immigration crackdown and visa restrictions.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshots of Jennifer Griffin and Pete Hegseth
The Hill

Fox Host Comes To Reporter's Defense After Pete Hegseth Berates Her At Pentagon Briefing

Fox News' chief political analyst Brit Hume came to the defense of Fox national security reporter Jennifer Griffin after their former colleague, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, criticized Griffin as the reporter "who misrepresents the most intentionally what the president says” in a Pentagon news conference.

Hegseth, a former Fox News anchor, had criticized media outlets—including his former network—for what he described as unpatriotic reporting. Hegseth took particular aim at early intelligence assessments suggesting that President Donald Trump's bombing of Iran may not have significantly crippled Iran’s nuclear capabilities.

Keep ReadingShow less

Teachers Share The Questions Students Asked In Class That Broke Their Hearts

Being a teacher is a calling.

It is not for the meek or weak of heart.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshot of Emily Compagno
Fox News

Fox Host Slams Dem For Dropping An F-Bomb After Praising Trump For The Same Thing Just Minutes Earlier

Fox News host Emily Compagno was criticized after she praised Donald Trump's use of the "f-bomb" earlier this week before condemning Texas Democratic Representative Jasmine Crockett's use of the same word—on the same episode of her show, no less.

Trump made headlines this week after admonishing Israel and Iran for violating a ceasefire agreement he'd announced on Truth Social. Although he claimed the ceasefire had been "agreed upon," Iran fired at least six missile barrages at Israel after it was supposed to take effect.

Keep ReadingShow less
Ken Jennings; Emily Croke
@Jeopardy/Instagram

Champ's Wild Final Jeopardy Connection

In a dramatic conclusion on last Monday’s Jeopardy!, a contestant revealed a surprising relationship to the final clue's answer. Hailing from Denver, Emily Croke made it to the final write-in portion of the game show with $12,200 in earnings.

In the category of “Collections,” host Ken Jennings read the clue:

Keep ReadingShow less