Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, April 18, 1990 TAG: 9004180281
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: LESLIE TAYLOR STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Leonard "Pete" Nicely said he needed the flexibility to sustain his taxidermy shop - one of the largest in the East - which employs nine people.
"I may get a call at 5 a.m. to go to North Carolina and South Carolina to pick up a marlin," Nicely told Judge James Turk. "I can't always call and get written permission to go."
One of the conditions of Nicely's probation is that he get permission from his probation officer before he travels.
Nicely said much of his business revenue is generated through organizing hunts in and out of the country. He was forced to forgo a free trip to Zimbabwe "to do some shooting and take care of animals" because of the restrictive conditions of his probation, he testified.
The conditions also have prohibited him from entertaining clients at such places as the Greenbrier, a resort in White Sulpher Springs, W.Va., he said.
"I have to call to get permission to play golf 18 miles from my house," Nicely said.
Nicely was fined $40,000 last June and given three years' probation for smuggling the hides of a tiger, a black leopard and several cheetahs - all endangered species - to be stuffed and sold at his taxidermy shop.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Ken Sorenson said reducing or relaxing Nicely's probation would defeat the purpose of punishment.
"It's appropriate that his travel be restricted," Sorenson said. "That's what he's in here for - to be watched over. Don't let him travel at all. Let him suffer the consequences."
by CNB