An Oregon school worker ended up without a job after deciding to leave work and go hunting while on a break. He was "blowing off steam." But his hunting expedition left him unemployed and also facing fines after killing a deer.
55-year-old Paul Simmons worked for 30 years in the Clatskanie School District. But in November 2023, the school district fired him for leaving work and going hunting with his son. Simmons says that he thought he was hunting on his personal time. The case gets complicated because authorities ended up charging Simmons with illegal hunting during his break.
Simmons shot and killed a deer in a field on Swedetown Road. However, Oregon State Police determined that it wasn't public land and charged him with trespassing, unlawful hunting, and official misconduct.
The 55-year-old later filed a lawsuit in the Columbia County Circuit Court claiming he was unaware he was trespassing when he shot and killed the deer in an open field on Swedetown Road in November 3, 2023. Now, the former school worker is suing for $677,000, saying he was unaware of any trespassing. He's seeking back pay and damages for emotional distress.
School Worker Gets Fired
Clatskanie Superintendent Danielle Hudson fired him over the charges. Hudson also highlighted that the school worker left work without permission. However, Simmons says it happened during his personal time. Ultimately, Simmons accepted a plea deal on the charges. It left him with a three year suspension of hunting as well as probation and a $2,000 fine.
In the lawsuit, Simmons believes he was wrongly fired. He highlighted the fact that he was a good employee for almost three decades, working his way up from mechanic to supervisor. As a supervisor, Simmons says that the job, blurring the lines between work and personal time. On the day in question, Simmons says that all of the buses were at the district garage and that he was on break.
According to Simmons, Hudson and he established a routine where he would address personal matters without requesting time off. From there, he and his son went hunting. They found an open field near a house that didn't have any no trespassing signs. The school worker assumed a family, who gave him permission to hunt on the land, owned this area. The family did own 15 acres nearby but not this particular area.
Upon arriving home, State Troopers greeted the school worker and confiscated the rifle and deer. Upon being fired, Simmons had 2,500 hours of unused leave. At the time, the school worker as struggling with his father's terminal cancer.
"Mr. Simmons realized that he needed a short break from work to manage the stress he was experiencing due to his father's diagnosis and his heavy workload," the litigation says.
