Now I could see giving these guys jail time
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Audubon wants stiffer penalties for killing migratory birds
Posted by The Oregonian October 15, 2007 23:35PM
Frustrated by the sentence of two Portland-area pigeon hobbyists who tried to kill protected hawks and raptors, the Audubon Society of Portland wants Congress to establish more severe penalties for killing migratory birds.
The group says U.S. District Judge Ancer Haggerty broke faith with the public last week by letting the two pigeon keepers off with $4,000 each in penalties and a year of probation.
Audubon wants stiffer penalties for killing migratory birds
Posted by The Oregonian October 15, 2007 23:35PM
Frustrated by the sentence of two Portland-area pigeon hobbyists who tried to kill protected hawks and raptors, the Audubon Society of Portland wants Congress to establish more severe penalties for killing migratory birds.
The group says U.S. District Judge Ancer Haggerty broke faith with the public last week by letting the two pigeon keepers off with $4,000 each in penalties and a year of probation.
Audubon officials said the sentence for some of the most egregious offenses against birds in the region shows that courts do not take wildlife crimes seriously enough.
Prosecutors had asked that the men each be ordered to pay $10,000, and the defense attorney for one of the men suggested a fine of $7,500, said Bob Sallinger, conservation director at the Audubon Society of Portland. The prosecutors cited public outrage over the case, in which one of the men boasted of suffocating hawks in garbage bags.
The sentences Haggerty issued, were "nothing more than a stiff slap on the wrist," Sallinger said. Although the penalties were substantial for the charges involved - misdemeanor violations of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act - they did not match the nature of the crimes, he said. "These cases send a terrible message to both future hawk killers and the community at large."
He is asking Oregon's congressional delegation to amend the Migratory Bird Treaty Act so that intentional wanton killing of protected birds could be treated as felonies carrying much stiffer sentences.
Jillian Schoene, a spokeswoman for U.S. Rep. David Wu, D-Ore., said Wu's office is discussing options with the Audubon Society.
Portland Mayor Tom Potter and Metro Council President David Bragdon had called for tough penalties against the men who targeted hawks and other raptors. Federal officials also received many letters and e-mails from the public calling for serious sanctions in the case.
The two men sentenced Thursday were Peter Kaufman and Ivan Hanchett. Both pleaded guilty. A third has pleaded guilty but has yet to be sentenced. Two others also have been charged.
Kaufman and Hanchett were leaders of a local group called the Northwest Roller Jockeys. Roller pigeons are known for their habit of tumbling in flight, which tends to attract hawks and other raptors preying on the pigeons. The men described to undercover agents their practice of trapping and killing the hawks.
Kaufman had a trap set in his Southeast Portland back yard to catch hawks or falcons, agents reported in court documents.
Hanchett told an agent that Kaufman had killed 30 hawks in a 45-day period. Hanchett admitted shooting hawks on many occasions, including an incident in which he shot a hawk with a shotgun
