AR-News: (MI - US)Man who claimed mistaken identity in killing wolf won't be charged

[Snugglezzz at aol.com]

TAPIOLA, Mich. (AP) -- Prosectuors said a Tapiola man who mistakenly killed a wolf near his home won't face criminal charges. 

Tim Timonen shot the wolf on May 8 after seeing what he thought were two coyotes chasing one of his steers inside a fenced area. After trying to chase the animals away, he got his rifle from his house and shot one of them. 

When he realized it was a collared wolf, Timonen called the state Department of Natural Resources. 

Houghton County Prosecutor Douglas Edwards told The Daily Mining Gazette of Houghton that Timonen's honesty and clean criminal record helped him decide not to pursue criminal charges. 

If charged, Timonen could have faced a misdemeanor offense carrying a possible jail sentence of 90 days. 

Gray wolves were reclassified last year to "threatened" from "endangered" in response to growing wolf populations.