U.S. Sportsmen�s Alliance
Foundation
801 Kingsmill Parkway, Columbus, OH
43229
Ph. 614/888-4868 � Fax 614/888-0326
Website: www.ussportsmen.org �
E-mail: [email protected]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - Contact: Beth Ruth (614)
888-4868 ext. 214
Nov. 3, 2006
Sportsmen Sue to Protect New
Jersey�s Bear Hunt
(Trenton) - New Jersey�s black bear season is in
trouble again and three sportsmen�s conservation organizations have
banded together to make sure that black bear hunting in New Jersey
takes places this season.
The U.S. Sportsmen�s Legal Defense Fund (U.S. SLDF),
the litigation program of the U.S. Sportsmen�s Alliance Foundation (USSAF),
Safari Club International, and the New Jersey State Federation of
Sportsmen�s Clubs have joined forces to sue the New Jersey
Department of Environmental Protection and the Division of Fish and
Wildlife to challenge New Jersey�s refusal to move forward with the
black bear season.
Although the season is set to begin on Dec. 4,
state officials have taken no action to implement the hunt.
State statutes and regulations require that a hunt
take place. New Jersey�s black bear management strategy, ordered in
2005 by the New Jersey Supreme Court, calls for bear hunting as an
integral management tool.
However, New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine has directed
state officials to use only �non-lethal methods� to control the
state�s bear population. Despite increasing numbers of bear
sightings and incidents, and the success of the state�s 2003 and
2005 bear seasons, Gov. Corzine has refused to permit wildlife
officials to implement their scientifically derived strategy to
manage bears and protect the public from overabundant bears this
December. No permit applications have been solicited, no permits
issued and no training classes scheduled.
The U.S. SLDF, Safari Club International and the
New Jersey State Federation of Sportsmen�s Clubs will jointly file
suit to challenge the state�s refusal to move forward with the bear
hunt.
�New Jersey�s governor has decided that politics
are more important than the safety of residents in bear country and
the health and stability of the bear population itself,� said Rob
Sexton, vice president for government affairs of the USSAF. �It is
up to people who truly care about wildlife conservation to stand up
and defend sound principles of wildlife management and common
sense.�
The U.S. Sportsmen�s Legal Defense Fund 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.
See related articles:
Hunter Threatens Governor Corzine's Life
- 30 Oct 2006
NJ Governor Jon Corzine stops annual
bear hunt - 28 Oct 2006
