(a) Except as provided in § 2-38-502(d), a person who knowingly releases or attempts to release a live hog upon public or private land upon conviction is guilty of an unclassified misdemeanor and is subject to a fine of not less than one thousand dollars ($1,000) per hog nor more than five thousand dollars ($5,000) per hog, imprisonment not exceeding ninety (90) days, or a combination of fine and imprisonment.
(b) Subsection (a) of this section does not prohibit a person from introducing a domestic hog for farm purposes onto private property enclosed with a fence sufficient under § 2-39-101 et seq. and with permission of the owner or lessee of the property.
(c) A person who knowingly purchases, sells, offers for sale, receives, possesses, imports, distributes, or transports a live feral hog upon conviction is guilty of an unclassified misdemeanor and is subject to a fine of one thousand dollars ($1,000) per hog or imprisonment not exceeding thirty (30) days, or both.
(d) Upon the arrest of a person under this section, the arresting law enforcement officer may seize and take custody of any hog in the possession of the arrested person and may seize any equipment used in furtherance of the violation, including without limitation a motor vehicle, trailer, and trap.
(e)
(1) A court having competent jurisdiction:
(A) Shall order the forfeiture and immediate euthanasia of any hog that was the basis of a conviction under this section;
(B) May order the forfeiture and immediate euthanasia of a hog before a conviction if the court determines that the hog poses an imminent risk to public health or safety; and
(C) May order the forfeiture of any seized equipment.
(2) However:
(A) A conveyance used by any person as a common carrier is not subject to forfeiture under this subsection unless it appears that the owner or other person in charge of the conveyance was a consenting party or privy to the commission or attempt to commit the violation;
(B) Equipment is not subject to forfeiture under this subsection by reason of any act or omission established by the owner of the equipment to have been committed or omitted without his or her knowledge or consent and without the knowledge or consent of any person having possession, care, or control of the equipment with the owner's permission; and
(C) A forfeiture of equipment encumbered by a security interest is subject to the security interest of the secured party if the secured party neither had knowledge of nor consented to the use of the equipment in the commission or attempt to commit the violation.
(f) In addition to the fines, penalties, and forfeitures imposed under this section, a court may require the defendant to make restitution to the state or any of its political subdivisions for transporting, housing, feeding, euthanizing, and disposing of any hog forfeited under this section.
(g) A certified law enforcement officer may write a citation for a violation under this section.
(h)
(1) Fines collected under this section shall be deposited into the Feral Hog Eradication Fund that is designated as special revenues for the Arkansas Natural Resources Commission.
(2) The funds designated under subdivision (h)(1) of this section are to be used for eradication efforts to eliminate feral hogs.
(i) This section does not apply to the purchase, sale, receipt, possession, import, or transportation of a live feral hog that serves as a mascot for an institution of higher education.