So we are clear, you are outraged that he hunted, not that he may have broken laws. That's fine, but it is a different discussion.
They aren't charging him. They are charging the people whose job it is to know where hunting becomes poaching.
No, I'm outraged because he was stupid enough to not ask "why are you having to lure the lion out? Why can't I just go actually hunt it?"
I would probably feel sympathy for him actually if he said, "sorry y'all. I didn't know this wasn't appropriate land. Here's my permit that I got from the game and wildlife people, and the hunting company told me that this place was legit for hunting these guys. I didn't realize it was right next to a PROTECTED SANCTUARY and they would try to lure protected animals out for me to shoot. I will check references better next time I decide I want to hunt big game." I'd go "OK, he didn't really have much of a clue. That's not so cool that he wants to hunt big game, but I get it. It does have to be done to cull the numbers sometime in certain places."
Instead we get some d-bag person representing him and the only response is "he maintains he had permits." Fuck him. I don't for a second believe he didn't know any of the rest of it.
He fully admits that he shot the animal, he fully admits he was hunting. He is showing zero remorse. For some people on this sanctuary, this animal was almost like a pet. It's like someone coming and shooting your dog that they saw and got him to come outside of your boundries, then shooting it and going "Well I mean, we had a permit to shoot dogs."
I think what Eznark is saying is that we know he killed the lion. We know he paid 55k to hunt the lion. What we don't know is if he had knowledge that the lion he killed was Cecil or not. He may have had no knowledge of where the lion came from. The guide lured the lion out into the open with the knowledge of where the lion came from, but that doesn't mean the shooter did.
If he obtained everything legally to hint a lion, he may not have known the lion he shot was protected. We should wait until more information comes out before the internet machine goes nuts on the guy and makes him lose his practice for something he may not have had any knowledge of.
Although that part looks to be too late.
I think I've been pretty clear that I don't give a shit if he knew who or what the lion was or not. Ignorance is not an excuse. Period. Let me say this again -
Ignorance is not an excuse. I don't care what the hunting place told him, I don't care what permits they said they had, I don't care. Just because you commit a crime in ignorance of the law (or in this case, someone told you it was OK) doesn't make you not culpable. Period.