Gone are the days where town vigilantes and cowboys would carry out extrajudicial killings of alleged cattle rustlers — by torchlight, we assume.
While times have changed and the judicial process is less about mob justice and more about proving someone is guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, people haven't changed — they still steal cattle.
Take Eastland County resident Clinton Easter, 47, who was sentenced to 30 years in prison after a Jan. 28 conviction for stealing cattle.
Authorities busted Easter last June after he hauled cattle that had previously reported missing to the Graham County Livestock Action. The man who unloaded the cattle realized the bovines were stolen after reading The Cattleman magazine later that day.
When Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association (TSCRA) special rangers caught up with Easter, they found more stolen cattle, trailers, guns and miscellaneous stolen property. The livestock and equipment were valued at more than $100,000.
Easter is still facing similar charges in Eastland, Comanche and Stephens counties.
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