MOUNT VERNON, Mo. – Four members of a southwest Missouri family were caught in a multi-year poaching case in which authorities say hundreds of deer were killed illegally.

Conservation agents are calling it one of the state's largest cases of deer poaching.

“The deer were trophy bucks taken illegally, mostly at night, for their heads, leaving the bodies of the deer to waste," said Lawrence County's prosecuting attorney, Don Trotter.

The case was so egregious that Judge Robert George of Missouri's 39th Judicial Circuit, which consists of Barry, Lawrence and Stone counties about 225 miles southwest of St. Louis, ordered a special addition to the jail term for one of the poachers.

David Berry Jr. must "view the Walt Disney movie Bambi with the first viewing being on or before Dec. 23, 2018, and at least one such viewing each month thereafter, during defendant's incarceration in the Lawrence County Jail."

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The case involves David Berry Sr. of Springfield; son David Berry Jr., 29, of Brookline; son Eric Berry, 20, of Everton, and Berry Sr.'s brother, Kyle Berry of Everton. State, federal and Canadian law enforcement agencies and conservation officers took part in a multi-year investigation involving the men and other suspects in Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska and Canada.

Fourteen Missouri residents have been tied to more than 230 charges in 11 Missouri counties, according to a Missouri Department of Conservation news release.

Three suspects had additional wildlife violations in Kansas, Nebraska and Canada. Two violated the federal Lacey Act, which prohibits trade in wildlife, fish and plants that have been illegally taken.

On Thursday, David Berry Jr. received a 120-day sentence in Barton County Circuit Court for a felony firearms probation violation. On Dec. 6, he received a one-year jail sentence in a Lawrence County court after pleading guilty to taking wildlife illegally Oct. 11.

The sentences will be served consecutively.

The convictions were made with information obtained starting in 2015 from Operation Game Thief, a hotline sponsored by the Missouri Department of Conservation and the Conservation Federation of Missouri.

“It is unknown how many deer the main group of suspects has taken illegally over the past several years,” said Andy Barnes, a Lawrence County conservation agent. “It would be safe to say that several hundred deer were taken illegally.”

Before interviews in July 2016, David Berry Sr. and Eric Berry had been convicted of taking gamefish by hand, an illegal activity that can involve nets, explosives, electricity or spear guns rather than using a pole or rod and reel. During the 2017 firearms deer season, while awaiting his court appearance for violations from the 2016 investigation, Eric Berry and an accomplice were caught using a spotlight to freeze deer in their tracks, also illegal.

To date, this group of poachers has paid $151,000 in bonds and $51,000 in fines and court costs and collectively served 33 days in jail.

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David Berry Sr. and David Berry Jr. had their hunting, fishing and trapping privileges revoked for life. Eric Berry and Kyle Berry had hunting and fishing privileges revoked for 18 years and 8 years, respectively.

Jeremiah Cline of Republic, who also hunted wildlife illegally and assisted the Berrys, had his hunting privileges revoked for five years.

Why take just the deer heads and leave the rest to rot?

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"It’s all about greed and ego," said Randy Doman, Missouri Department of Conservation protection division chief. "Taking just the heads is their version of obtaining a trophy, and leaving the carcass behind is merely an afterthought.

"While there are some cases where poachers go after the antlers for profit, with this bunch it was more about the thrill of the kill itself," he said.

Follow Wes Johnson on Twitter: @WesJohnsonNL