COEUR d'ALENE - An additional charge has been filed in the case of a Hauser woman accused of attacking a hunter's falcon.

Patti MacDonald, 60, is now facing one misdemeanor count of pursuing a migratory bird protected by federal law. The charge carries as long as six months of jail time, $1,000 in fines, as well as the possibility MacDonald could lose her ability to purchase a hunting or fishing license for up to three years.

Kootenai County Prosecutor Barry McHugh declined to comment when asked why his office is pursuing an additional charge in the case.

In March, MacDonald was charged with one misdemeanor count of beating or harassing an animal. If found guilty, she could be sentenced to a maximum of six months in jail and $5,000 in fines.

MacDonald's case is scheduled to be heard by a jury on June 29.

The incident occurred on Jan. 7 when MacDonald allegedly parked her red Jeep Wrangler near the spot where Scott Dinger's falcon, Hornet, was in the process of killing a duck the duo had successfully hunted. As Dinger, 50, approached the scene, he saw his falcon, clearly injured, flying away.

Dinger found Hornet dead about an hour later and said the bird had suffered a fractured skull and broken leg.

Craig Walker, an Idaho Department of Fish and Game regional conservation officer, became aware of the incident the night it occurred and began an investigation. In his report, Walker wrote that his office received a phone call from an unidentified woman who said she saw a falcon take a duck from the air and then tried to scare away the falcon in an attempt to save the duck.

When the falcon remained in place holding the duck, the woman said she removed a scarf that had beads on it and beat the bird.

"The woman later stated that she had been very upset about the duck being injured, but felt bad about injuring someone's pet, because she 'beat the crap out of it really hard,'" the report states.

The report adds that another investigator was able to use the office's caller identification system to identify the anonymous caller as MacDonald.