A trail cam photo of Ward's poached deer. Photo from the Indianapolis Star.
January 04, 2013
By Eric Conn
There are no stupid questions. We've all probably heard your mother utter this phrase at some point.
Unfortunately, it seems that Donald Ward might have just proved your mom wrong.
Ward, of Brownsburg, Ind., recently plead guilty to three misdemeanor counts for poaching a 10-point buck from the road. Not only did he poach the massive buck from the road at night and out of season, Ward also used a .270, which is not permitted even during rifle season.
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When finally confronted by Indiana Department of Natural Resources conservation officer Jeff Wells after his arrest, Ward asked the now infamous question: "If I admit I killed it, can I keep the rack?"
No, genius, you do not get to keep the rack. Ward also told the Indianapolis Star in an interview after his arrest that he was so overcome by the size of the deer he couldn't stop himself from shooting it.
The sad thing is that the state offered a plea bargain erasing any jail time or felony charges, reducing the sentence to 178 days of probation and 80 hours of community service. There ought to be a felony charge just for asking a question that stupid.
Despite what we've been told, there are stupid questions because there are stupid people. For helping us see this truth yet again, we at Petersen's not-so-proudly present Ward with the "Stupid Question of the Year" Award.
