‘Dog the Bounty Hunter’ Helped Kill Idaho Bounty Hunter Bill

BOISE, Idaho (AP) — The reality TV star known as "Dog the Bounty Hunter" says he helped kill an Idaho measure to regulate bounty hunters because it would have prevented them from wearing badges.

Duane Chapman tells the Post Register that the bill also would have prevented bounty hunters licensed in other states from pursuing bail jumpers in Idaho, unless they have an Idaho license to carry a concealed weapon. Chapman is not allowed to own a firearm because of a 1976 first-degree murder conviction.

In Idaho's recently completed legislative session, the bill cleared the House but not the Senate after Chapman lobbied against it. Republican Rep. Richard Wills of Glenns Ferry confirms Chapman got involved and says he's disappointed somebody from out of state could dictate what happens with an Idaho bill.