Houston Man Pleads Guilty to Killing Bald Eagle

PORTER, Texas — A 42-year-old suburban Houston man entered a guilty plea to one count of shooting and causing the death of a bald eagle, the U.S. Department of Justice announced on May 14, 2026.

The defendant, who resides in Porter, admitted to the conduct that violates the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act. The statute prohibits the taking, possession, or killing of bald eagles without a permit from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Bald eagles have been protected at the federal level since 1940; the species was delisted from the Endangered Species Act in 2007 but retains full protection under the eagle-specific law.

The plea was entered in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas. Under the statute, a first-time individual violator faces a maximum penalty of one year in prison and a $100,000 fine. The court has not yet set a sentencing date.

The admission closes one case within the Justice Department’s ongoing enforcement of wildlife protection statutes. Federal prosecutors in the Southern District of Texas handle such matters as part of broader efforts to deter illegal shooting of protected raptors. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service investigates eagle deaths and refers cases for prosecution when evidence supports a violation.

This marks the latest federal conviction for an individual killing of a bald eagle in Texas. The state hosts one of the largest populations of wintering and breeding bald eagles in the southern United States. Each prosecuted case requires federal investigators to document the cause of death, typically through necropsy, and to trace the weapon or shooter.

Sentencing will occur under U.S. Sentencing Guidelines that treat the offense as a strict-liability wildlife violation. The judge must consider the defendant’s criminal history, acceptance of responsibility through the guilty plea, and any aggravating factors such as use of a firearm.

The outcome will set the restitution amount, if any, and probation conditions that may include prohibitions on firearm possession or hunting.

The Department of Justice release provides no further details on the exact date or location of the shooting within the Houston suburbs.