Former Miss Kansas Theresa Vail pleads guilty in illegal hunting case

JUNEAU, Alaska Theresa Vail, a former Miss Kansas who hosted an adventure TV show has pleaded guilty to killing an Alaska grizzly bear without a state hunting tag.

Vail was sentenced in state court Wednesday to one year of probation and a $750 fine. The sentence also included $1,300 restitution that could be split with the other defendants if they’re convicted.

A second charge against her was dismissed.

Vail held a single, nonresident bear tag, according to a charging document. On a guided hunt last May, two bears – a male and a female – came into view. Investigators said she shot the male and attempted to kill it with a second shot, but instead killed the second bear. Both bears died.

The field guide, Joseph Andrew Miller, contacted master guide Michael Wade Renfro, and a collective decision was made to fly out another tag that Miller attached to the bear, a charging document in Vail’s case states. Vail told an investigating wildlife trooper she signed the tag record May 27 but backdated it at Renfro’s request, the document says.

Neither Miller nor Renfro contacted authorities to report the second bear, according to charging documents.