Birdman
09-27-2004, 12:40 PM
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Doug Jeanneret (614) 888-4868 x 212
September 27, 2004 Beth Ruth (614) 888-4868 x 214
Anti-Hunters Head to Court to End Maryland Bear Hunt
(Annapolis) - Two of the nation's leading animal rights groups filed suit in Maryland today in an attempt to stop the state's first bear hunt in over 50 years. The U.S. Sportsmen's Alliance Foundation's Sportsmen's Legal Defense Fund (SLDF) and the Maryland Sportsmen's Association immediately filed to intervene in the case to ensure that sportsmen have a voice before the court.
"Maryland wildlife experts have concluded that a hunt is necessary to control the rising bear population," said Rick Story, senior vice president of the U.S. Sportsmen's Alliance Foundation. "The lawsuit is another attempt by animal rights groups to fulfill their mission of ending hunting. We are confident that sound science, common sense and the law will prevail in the courtroom."
The suit was brought by the New York based Fund for Animals, the Humane Society of the United States, headquartered in Washington, D.C., and three individual plaintiffs.
The bear hunt is scheduled for October 25-30 and December 6-11. It is needed to help reduce western Maryland's skyrocketing black bear population. There has been a recent increase in human-bear conflicts in the state.
"We're dealing with a bear population in Maryland that has grown 127 percent in a 10-year period," said Paul Peditto director of the Maryland Department of Natural Resource's Wildlife Heritage Service. He calls the hunt "a highly regulated, structured management strategy" that is "consistent with the decisions of a citizen advisory task force."
The U.S. Sportsmen's Alliance Foundation's SLDF is the nation's only litigation force that exclusively represents sportsmen's interests in the courts. It defends wildlife management and sportsmen's rights in local, state and federal courts. The SLDF represents the interests of sportsmen and assists government lawyers who have little or no background in wildlife law.
September 27, 2004 Beth Ruth (614) 888-4868 x 214
Anti-Hunters Head to Court to End Maryland Bear Hunt
(Annapolis) - Two of the nation's leading animal rights groups filed suit in Maryland today in an attempt to stop the state's first bear hunt in over 50 years. The U.S. Sportsmen's Alliance Foundation's Sportsmen's Legal Defense Fund (SLDF) and the Maryland Sportsmen's Association immediately filed to intervene in the case to ensure that sportsmen have a voice before the court.
"Maryland wildlife experts have concluded that a hunt is necessary to control the rising bear population," said Rick Story, senior vice president of the U.S. Sportsmen's Alliance Foundation. "The lawsuit is another attempt by animal rights groups to fulfill their mission of ending hunting. We are confident that sound science, common sense and the law will prevail in the courtroom."
The suit was brought by the New York based Fund for Animals, the Humane Society of the United States, headquartered in Washington, D.C., and three individual plaintiffs.
The bear hunt is scheduled for October 25-30 and December 6-11. It is needed to help reduce western Maryland's skyrocketing black bear population. There has been a recent increase in human-bear conflicts in the state.
"We're dealing with a bear population in Maryland that has grown 127 percent in a 10-year period," said Paul Peditto director of the Maryland Department of Natural Resource's Wildlife Heritage Service. He calls the hunt "a highly regulated, structured management strategy" that is "consistent with the decisions of a citizen advisory task force."
The U.S. Sportsmen's Alliance Foundation's SLDF is the nation's only litigation force that exclusively represents sportsmen's interests in the courts. It defends wildlife management and sportsmen's rights in local, state and federal courts. The SLDF represents the interests of sportsmen and assists government lawyers who have little or no background in wildlife law.