Police had been investigating Cox family of hunters in Freeburg for more than a month
Former big league pitcher Danny Cox and his family were being investigated for potential hunting violations for more than a month before Illinois Conservation Police showed up on their rural Freeburg property in mid-November and issued 33 citations and written warnings to five people.
That’s according to a Nov. 26 field report that the Illinois Department of Natural Resources recently released to the BND in response to a Freedom of Information Act request.
In the report, Officer Amanda McKune wrote that she was using an IDNR database for research as early as Oct. 9, when she found apparent deer-hunting violations by Nancy Cox, wife of Danny Cox, a former St. Louis Cardinals pitcher and Gateway Grizzlies manager.
“Nancy L. Cox harvested a 5 pt. buck without a habitat stamp on 10/08/22,” McKune wrote in the report. “Nancy also harvested a doe with a shotgun on 12/04/21 without a habitat stamp.”
McKune and another officer went to the Cox property but failed to make contact with residents, the report stated. They later determined that Nancy Cox doesn’t hunt and others were unlawfully using her permits.
When contacted by phone last week, Nancy Cox declined comment on behalf of herself and her husband.
While on the Cox property in October, officers allegedly observed trail cameras on nine baited deer stands or blinds with corn, molasses and mineral salt. Danny Cox, 63, told them on Nov. 18 that he’s a “conservationist” who feeds deer year-round to make sure they have enough to eat, the report stated.
Deer baiting is illegal in Illinois due to ethical or “fair-chase” standards and the risk of disease spread with congregated feeding, according to the IDNR, although more than 20 states allow it.
McKune reported finding apparent hunting violations by other Cox family members while checking the IDNR database on Nov. 10 and Nov. 16, and she noted that police had gone to their property on Nov. 14 to verify that deer stands and blinds were still baited.
References to police activity on Oct. 9, Nov. 10 and Nov. 14 indicate that an Illinois Conservation Police investigation of the Cox family was well underway on Nov. 15, when officers used an Illinois State Police airplane to conduct aerial surveillance in the area, as previously reported by the BND.
51 alleged violations total
Illinois Conservation Police returned to the Cox property early in the morning of Nov. 18, the first day of the 2022 firearm deer-hunting season, according to the field report.
They issued 21 citations and 12 written warnings to Danny Cox, sons Kamdan Cox, 27, and Kyle Cox, 32, and two friends from out of state for alleged violations ranging from failure to wear the required blaze-orange clothing to using bait and hunting without proper permits and stamps.
“When questioned about Nancy’s harvests, Danny told me he used Nancy’s firearm deer permit to harvest a doe on 12/04/21 and Kamdan used her archery deer permit on 10/08-22 to harvest a 5 pt. buck,” McKune wrote in the report.
Illinois law requires most deer hunters to obtain a state hunting license; an archery or firearm deer permit, which is free to resident landowners with 39.5 acres or more; and habitat stamps that raise money for habitat restoration. None are transferable to other people.
Some citations for Illinois hunting violations can be handled with $195 fine payments. In the Cox case, police are mandating appearances in St. Clair County Circuit Court on Jan. 18 for all five men.
On Nov. 18, police also went to adjoining property owned by Freeburg Mayor Seth Speiser and issued eight citations and 10 written warnings for similar hunting violations to Speiser, his son Mitchell Speiser and another man, Brian Forrester.
Police didn’t mandate court appearances in the Speiser case.
Cox children investigated
Illinois Conservation Police were using the IDNR database to investigate Nancy and Danny Cox’s daughter, Kayleigh Cox, and son, Kyle Cox, before showing up on their property Nov. 18, according to the field report.
On Nov. 10, McKune determined that Kayleigh Cox apparently had harvested a 10-point buck with a crossbow without a hunting license or habitat stamp. That led to questions about her residency.
“After further investigation, I found Kayleigh did not permanently reside (on the property),” McKune wrote. “In order to receive landowner permits the individual must live with the landowner.”
McKune also determined that Kayleigh Cox apparently had harvested a doe with a shotgun in 2021 with an invalid landowner permit. Police later learned that Kayleigh Cox doesn’t hunt and others were unlawfully using her permits, the field report stated.
On Nov. 16, McKune determined that Kyle Cox apparently had harvested a 7-point buck with a compound bow without a hunting license or habitat stamp, and he wasn’t eligible for a free landowner permit because he didn’t live on the property, either.
McKune also determined that Kyle Cox apparently had harvested an 8-point buck with a shotgun in 2021 without a hunting license, habitat stamp or resident landowner eligibility.
McKune’s Nov. 26 field report was the second released by the IDNR in response to a Freedom of Information Act request filed by the BND. Earlier last month, the agency released a Nov. 28 field report written by Officer David Ray that focused mainly on the Speiser property.
Ray’s report referred to the Illinois Conservation Police using an Illinois State Police airplane on Nov. 15 to observe possible baited areas southeast of Freeburg, then going to the Speiser and Cox properties soon after to verify their existence and mark them.
Police contact on Nov. 18
McKune and Illinois Conservation Police Officer Don Schachner went to the Cox property and made contact with Danny Cox, Kyle Cox, Steve Pate and Barry Northenor early in the morning of Nov. 18, according to the Nov. 26 field report.
Police determined that Danny Cox and Northenor weren’t wearing and didn’t possess blaze-orange clothing and that Danny Cox, Pate and Northenor were unlawfully firearm deer hunting with the aid of bait.
“Danny told me he puts corn out all year round to help make sure the deer have food to eat,” McKune wrote. “Danny told me he likes to think of himself as a conservationist and tries to do things the right way.”
According to the report, Danny Cox told McKune that neither Nancy Cox nor Kayleigh Cox hunt; that he shares their permits with friends from out of state; and that sometimes he uses their antlerless-only permits to hunt and provide meat for family consumption.
Danny Cox told McKune that Pate used Kyle Cox’s archery deer permit to harvest a 7-point buck on Nov. 16, the report stated.
“Danny told me he has been doing this for several years and realizes he made a mistake,” McKune wrote. “Danny told me he will stop feeding the deer and will make sure all the bait is removed.”
The report also alleged that:
Pate originally told officers that he didn’t know bait was present on the Cox property and that he hadn’t harvested a deer in 2022 but later stated that he had forgotten about harvesting a 7-point buck on Nov. 16 from a blind with a large mineral block, corn and a camera and that he had used Kyle’s landowner archery permit.
Kyle was hunting out of the only blind where bait wasn’t found, but he falsely told officers that he lived on the property before acknowledging that he actually lived in Belleville with his wife and had a bedroom in his parents’ home, where he sometimes stayed while helping them on the property.
Northenor, a friend who apparently went to school with Danny Cox, told officers that he didn’t know bait was present on the Cox property and that he had forgotten to put on blaze-orange clothing that he had in his truck at the house.
In a phone interview, Kamdan Cox, who lives in Tennessee, admitted placing bait on the property in the past; harvesting a turkey on Oct. 1 without a valid turkey permit and failing to report it; and harvesting a 5-point buck on Oct. 8 using his mother’s archery deer permit.
Police seized antlers from an 8-point buck and 10-point buck determined to have been unlawfully harvested by Danny Cox and antlers from a 7-point buck determined to have been unlawfully harvested by Pate.
List of citations and warnings
Here’s a complete list of citations and written warnings from Nov. 18 on the Cox property:
DANNY B. COX, 63, of Freeburg
Citations:
Failure to wear blaze-orange hat and vest
Placement of bait for deer
Firearm deer-hunting with aid of bait
Take of 8-point buck with aid of bait
Take of 10-point buck with aid of bait
Use of archery deer permit issued to other
Warnings:
Use of archery deer permit issued to other
Use of archery deer permit issued to other
Unlawful possession of road sign
KAMDAN B. COX, 27, of Clarksville, Tennessee
Citations:
Unlawful take of wild turkey
Turkey hunting without valid permit
Failure to report turkey harvest properly
Unlawful take of 5-point buck
Archery deer-hunting without valid permit
Archery deer-hunting with aid of bait
Falsifying harvest report for 5-point buck
Warnings:
Turkey hunting with aid of bait
Failure to tag turkey immediately upon kill
Possession of another person’s archery deer permit
Failure to tag 5-point buck upon kill
Unlawful placement of waterfowl bait
KYLE B. COX, 32, of Belleville
Citations:
Firearm deer-hunting without valid permit
Firearm deer-hunting without habitat stamp
Providing false information to obtain permits
Warning:
Firearm deer-hunting without license
STEVE M. PATE, 62, of Marietta, Georgia
Citations:
Firearm deer-hunting with aid of bait
Archery deer-hunting without valid permit
Unlawful take of 7-point buck (archery)
Failure to tag deer immediately upon kill
Warnings:
Firearm deer-hunting without license or stamp in possession
Providing false or deceptive information to police
BARRY T. NORTHENOR, 63, of Roswell, Georgia
Citation:
Failure to wear blaze-orange hat and vest
Warning:
Firearm deer-hunting with aid of bait
