Illinois woman, 25, is charged after trying to take up-close photo of grizzly bear and her three cubs in Yellowstone National Park
An Illinois woman faces federal charges after a video surfaced of her standing roughly 15 feet away from a grizzly bear and her cubs in order take an up-close photo of the animals at Yellowstone National Park.
Samantha Dehring, 25, was in the Roaring Mountain area of the park on May 10 when she was recorded by a visitor around 4.45pm.
In the video, a mama bear can be seen briefly charging at Dehring, who holds a cellphone in her hands directed at the animals.
Samantha Dehring, 25, faces federal charges after video surfaced of her standing roughly 15 feet away from a grizzly bear and her cubs because she was trying to take a picture of them
When other visitors noticed the animals, they backed off, but Dehring continued to take pictures. She now faces federal charges
The bear then retreats as two of her cubs run to the forest and Dehring walks away while she puts her cellphone inside her pocket.
A person in the background says: 'Oh my god! I got that on video.'
Darcie Addington, who recorded the scene from her car window, said that other visitors tried to warn Dehring not to get too close to the bear, but she didn't listen.
"It was terrifying," Addington told USA Today.
Dehring, of Carol Stream, will next appear in court in Mammoth Hot Spring, Wyoming, on August 26, ABC reported.
She faces one count of willfully remaining, approaching and photographing wildlife within 100 yards, and one count of feeding, touching, teasing, frightening or intentionally disturbing wildlife, U.S. attorney for the district of Wyoming, Bob Murray, said on Monday.
The mama bear briefly charged at Dehring, who walked away, while the cubs ran to the forest
The National Park Service has reported an average of one bear attack per year at Yellowstone. But recently, incidents involving grizzly bears have increased. A man was killed by a bear just outside the park in April. And another 39-year-old man was attacked inside the park in May
Murray said: 'While other visitors slowly backed off and got into their vehicles, Dehring remained.'
If found guilty, she could be jailed up to a year and would have to pay a $10,000 fine.
Yellowstone National Park regulations state that visitors should keep a minimum 100-yard distance from bears at all times and to never feed or approach a bear to take a photo.
The park has experienced a spike in visitors upon reopening from lockdown. There were 438,000 visitors in May compared with 434,000 in 2019 - an 11 percent jump and the busiest May on record.
In May, a ranger shot at a grizzly bear as it charged toward him and a road filled with cars.
The National Park Service has registered an average of one bear attack per year at Yellowstone, with three fatal incidents since 2010. But incidents with bears and visitors have increased this year.
A 39-year-old man was injured at Yellowstone in May when he was hiking alone on a trail near Mammoth Hot Springs. He sustained injuries on his legs but managed to hike back on his own.
A man was fatally attacked by a bear just outside the park in April.
The last fatal incident inside the park happened in 2015, when a day hiker was killed by an adult female grizzly bear with two cubs near the Elephant Back Loop Trail in the Lake Village.