BOISE — An Idaho Fish and Game commissioner who came under fire after photos from a recent hunting trip to Africa were obtained by the media, has resigned.
Gov. Butch Otter announced that he asked for and has received the resignation of Blake Fischer.
“I have high expectations and standards for every appointee in state government,” said Otter. “Every member of my administration is expected to exercise good judgment. Commissioner Fischer did not. Accordingly, I have accepted his resignation from the Idaho Fish and Game Commission.”
In his resignation letter to the governor, Fischer admitted he used poor judgment in sharing the photos of a hunt which he did not display an appropriate level of sportsmanship and respect for the animals.
Photos showed Fischer and his wife posing with at least 14 animals they shot and killed in the country of Namibia.
One photo showed Fisher smiling with four dead baboons propped in front of him, blood visible on the abdomen of the smallest baboon. He used a bow and arrows to kill them.
They also killed a giraffe, leopard, impala, sable antelope, waterbuck, kudu, warthog, gemsbok (oryx) and an eland.
Last week, Fred Trevey, a former Fish and Game commissioner, sent an email to Fischer expressing disappointment.
Trevey wrote that he was dismayed and disappointed by the photo and accompanying text of Fischer smiling with a family of baboons that he had shot.
In his letter of resignation, Fischer said his actions were out of character for him and he accepts full responsibility for his actions. He went on to say that he felt it was in the best interest of sportsmen and the citizens of Idaho that he resign his post.
He offered an apology to the hunters and anglers he was appointed to represent.
Fischer was originally appointed to the Idaho Fish and Game Commission in July of 2014 and he was reappointed in June of 2018. His resignation is effective immediately and the governor's office says a search for his replacement begins immediately.
Here is the full text of Fischer's letter of resignation:
Dear Governor Otter,
Please consider this letter as a statement of my resignation from the Idaho Fish & Game Commission. I recently made some poor judgments that resulted in sharing photos of a hunt in which I did not display an appropriate level of sportsmanship and respect for the animals I harvested. While these actions were out of character for me, I fully accept responsibility and feel it is best for the citizens of Idaho and sportsmen and women that I resign my post. I apologized to the hunters and anglers of Idaho who I was appointed to represent and I hope that my actions will not harm the integrity and ethic of the Idaho Fish & Game Department moving forward.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
