Poach Definition:

To kill or take an animal or fish from the property of another.

In R v MacLeod, Justice Matheson of the Saskatchewan Court of Queen's Bench had before him the case of Danny Macleod, caught red-handed killing, wthout license, and to sell the carcass or meat thereof, deer and elk.

MacLeod was convicted and fined and Matheson, who heard and dismissed the appeal, wrote:

"It would seem that it has been generally accepted - and perhaps has been for generations - that the term poaching, when utilized in the context of animals and birds, means the illegal taking of animals and birds."

The 1959 edition of Jowitt's Dictionary of English Law defines poaching as:

"... the popular name for the offence of unlawfully taking or destroying game (animals) on another's land.... It also means taking fish, e.g. salmon or trout, by illegal methods."

REFERENCES:

  • R v MacLeod, 160 Sask R 26 (1997)

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