Poacher pleads guilty in trophy controversy

Dave Golowenski
| Special to The Dispatch

We can actually only guess what the man with the crossbow had in mind when he killed a deer with enormous antlers in Clinton County a year ago.

Nonetheless, evidence presented in the ongoing indictment against Christopher “CJ” Alexander provided a clue as to intentions.

This is what Outdoor Life magazine reported last week: “I’m going to be offered stupid money for this baby with a deer head. …Like buying house type silver. … This deer will bring us money,” Alexander promised in an October 17 text to his fiancée.

The text was sent a few weeks before the murder.

It turned out that money wasn’t the stupidest aspect of Alexander’s seemingly premeditated pursuit. Success rested on the certainty that everyone would undoubtedly buy a remarkable story that would certainly attract the attention of many and invite close scrutiny.

Rather than getting “money to buy a house” and modest fame for killing what might have been considered Ohio’s biggest bucks, Alexander was investigated, a was indicted and pleaded guilty last week in a Clinton County courthouse to numerous charges.

Sentencing is scheduled for December 11.

The guilty pleas came after Alexander’s long insistence that he was being unfairly prosecuted. Accusations apparently surfaced shortly after his description of events was broadcast, including an account in this newspaper dated December 3.

The capture of the deer on Nov. 9, 2023, was not planned or anticipated, Alexander told The Dispatch.

“I was on the stand at 5 a.m.,” he said. “I first saw the deer at about 120 feet, probably around 4:30 in the afternoon. I knew it was a giant. I didn’t know it could be a record .

Veteran hunter and authoritative scorer Mike Rex, who drove from his home near Athens to Wilmington to observe up close, said the antlers were the largest he had ever held.

Rex, who has numerous entries in the Ohio record book, expressed confidence that the buck would set a state record among typical, i.e. symmetrical, racks.

The price was to be officially assessed in January by a panel of selected measurers. Official grading takes place after a 60 day drying period taking into account any “shrinkage” that may occur.

During the wait, Alexander said he had already been offered $20,000 for the antlers. He added, however, that he would hold until the official score was finished, estimating that the rack could fetch $100,000 if the scorers determined it was an Ohio record that was also among the three greatest of all time in North America.

However, between the deer’s disappearance and its elevation to myth, Ohio Division of Wildlife investigators, acting on a tip, seized the antlers, cape and hunting tools.

The initial question was where the deer was killed and whether Alexander had permission to hunt on the property, which was not at the location he had reported. Things unfolded from there.

Alexander pleaded guilty last week to several charges related to the illegal taking of the money. He also pleaded guilty to taking a second antlered deer – the limit is one – during the 2023 season.

The guilty pleas covered: two counts of illegal taking or possession of deer; hunting without a license; hunting without a deer license; sell illegally captured or possessed deer antlers; highlighting; four counts of hunting without authorization; falsification of evidence; flight; misdemeanor theft; and falsification.

Maximum penalties include $13,750 in fines, community control, five-year hunting license suspension and restitution. Restitution for the large sum of money was calculated at $35,071.73. Restitution for the second dollar is $4,625. Three other people, including two men and a woman, also pleaded guilty to crimes related to Alexander’s activities.

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