After six and a half hours of deliberation, a jury in Jackson Hole, Wyoming has convicted a hunter of illegally killing a young grizzly bear that was the offspring of a famous photogenic mother bear known as Bear 399.

Stephen Westmoreland, 41, had claimed that he was acting in self defense and fear for his life when he shot the grizzly, known to researchers as Bear 615, last autumn from a distance of about 40 yards—nearly half of a football field separated hunter from bear.

Westmoreland, who was hiking out of the Bridger-Teton National Forest at the time of the encounter with a field dressed deer cape on his back, startled the bruin as it was feeding on a moose carcass.

Law enforcement officials charged Westmoreland with a game violation after they determined he was in no imminent danger.  Wildlife Art Journal readers around the world have been interested in the outcome of the trial that resulted from the bear's killing.

The case has generated national attention in the U.S. for a number of reasons.  Not only was the young grizzly one of three triplets born to Bear 399 (read a story about photographer Cal McKitrick who took a remarkable picture of the sow and her cubs), but there is a huge debate in the U.S. over the biological status of grizzly bears which for more than a quarter century have been classified as a federally-protected species in the Greater Yellowstone ecosystem.

After the population of grizzlies nearly crashed in the 1970s and 1980s, the number of bears has increased as a result of habitat protection and restrictions on human behavior, with a noticeable expansion of bears documented in former haunts, including Jackson Hole and the immediate vicinity of Grand Teton National Park and Bridger-Teton National Forest. Bear 399 and her brood attracted huge crowds of admirers along the roadside of Grand Teton Park in 2007.  A detailed story about the foursome can be found here.

The jury that convicted Westmoreland included a rancher, a few hunters, and an outfitter. Following the decision, the judge fined Westmoreland $500.  He could have been sentenced to a year in jail and a $10,000 fine.

Prosecuting attorney Steve Weichman said afterward that the verdict should send a message:  That the Greater Yellowstone ecosystem, with its full complement of wildlife, including grizzlies and wolves, is a special place and requires special care and awareness for those who pass through it.

For the record, violent encounters between bears and people are extremely rare.