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12/9/05 - Posted from the Daily Record newsroom
Wildlife chief says bear hunt will run through Saturday

Number killed, now 246, won't exceed target set by state

BY MATT MANOCHIO
DAILY RECORD

State officials overseeing the state's second bear hunt in 35 years said Thursday that the hunt likely will continue into Saturday, despite acting Gov. Richard Codey's plan to prematurely end it if enough bears were killed.

"The commissioner is aware of the governor's concern," state Division of Fish and Wildlife Director Martin McHugh said Thursday. "We are closely monitoring the results on a daily basis to ensure that we don't reach a point that doesn't imperil the overall bear population. Based on the numbers that we have so far, we're not there."

Codey remarked early Thursday that he would call Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Bradley Campbell and tell him to call off the hunt if hunters neared the statewide goal of 300 to 330 bears killed.

McHugh, during a daily teleconference with the media, said hunters had killed a total of 246 bears as of Thursday afternoon, and the number was not close enough to the goal to cancel the hunt before its scheduled end on Saturday. He also said 24 hours'notice is required to end the hunt, and it cannot be canceled midday.

Those opposed to the hunt plan to demonstrate Saturday at Wawayanda State Park in Vernon.

McHugh said there was one alleged incident involving a protester and hunter Thursday at Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area, but said he didn't know specifics of the report.

Four protesters were arrested at Wawayanda on Wednesday in what the activists described as a sting operation involving two hunters and a park ranger who was disguised with a ski mask.

McHugh did not deny it was a sting, saying, "That's what has been reported to me."

The four arrested were Angela Metler, 49, of Vernon, who is director of the New Jersey Animal Rights Alliance, which had unsuccessfully sued to stop the six-day hunt; Theresa M. Fritzges, 57, of East Windsor; Albert Kazemian, 49, of Vernon; and Janet A. Piszar, 52, of Millburn.

Lynda Smith, of the Bear Education and Resource Group, which opposes the hunt and also unsuccessfully sued to stop it, spoke on behalf of the arrested activists and said they had done nothing wrong.

In activist's backyard

She said hunters were practically in the backyard of one of the activists, and that the hunters were taunting the activists using racial slurs. At no point did the activists restrict the movement of hunters or interfere with their ability to hunt, she said in a statement Wednesday.

The state park ranger who made the arrests described the encounter as one where he and two hunters felt worried for their safety as the activists allegedly encircled them to disrupt their hunt, according to an incident report released Thursday by the state. The ranger wrote that he accompanied the hunters because of complaints they had made over the previous two days.

The officer, Walter Sanford, wrote that while he and the two hunters were walking on a trail in the park, "We were intercepted by five individuals wearing orange 'Wounded Bear Rescue' shirts who began to follow us. Several of the individuals were in front of us and some were behind us, so I asked them what they were doing and they said that they were bird-watching."

Followed, surrounded

Sanford wrote that as the hunters moved on, they were followed.

"The individuals began to surround us, at times within 10 feet," he wrote.

"In an elevated tone they began calling us killers and telling us we shouldn't be here and that these were their bears," Sanford wrote. "We replied that we thought they were bird-watching. I stated that this land belonged to everyone and that we can all get along."

The hunters moved on but were still followed. At one point the hunters "begged them to please leave us alone," Sanford wrote. "At this point they began to encircle us and close in on us, even closer than before, to approximately 5 feet."

Sanford wrote that Metler began screaming at the top of her lungs "and said she will not leave us alone."

Sanford said there was a lot of conversation between the two groups, including his attempt to explain why hunting was important, to which Metler allegedly replied, "the only thing that should be hunted is hunters," the ranger wrote.

Metler on Thursday referred comment to her attorney, Gina Calogero, who responded: "My clients are looking forward to the truth coming out. It does appear there may have been harassment, threats and bigoted comments made (by the hunters)."

Sanford wrote that three other women also were screaming and that the hunters pleaded with them to voice their concerns elsewhere.

"We discussed with them that our troops in Iraq are fighting for freedoms such as these and that as Americans we have the right to free speech and freedom of beliefs and that we agreed with their passion for a cause," Sanford wrote.

"It was at this point that ... Kazemian stated, 'I'll get my Arab friends to hunt you, see how you like it,'" according to Sanford's account.

Asked for addresses

Kazemian and Metler then asked where the hunters lived, wrote Sanford, who later added that the hunters felt worried at that point so he called for backup.

Sanford then took off his face mask and hunting jacket and exposed his uniform, badge and gun belt, and declared everyone was under arrest, his report said. One woman fled but after backup arrived four arrests were made, he wrote.

The incident report says State Police logged Kazemian into the Office of Counter-Terrorism Web site because of his comments. Kazemian was charged with disorderly conduct, hunter harassment, obstruction of administration of law, resisting arrest and terroristic threats.

The other three were charged with disorderly conduct, hunter harassment, obstruction of administration of law and resisting arrest.

McHugh declined to comment on the report.

He said that the hunt was going well.

"We have a very healthy population of these animals," McHugh said. "I think the biologists, their predictions, are pretty much on ... track to have a similar result."

The bear hunt in 2003 netted 328 bears.

"I think it's been a successful hunt," McHugh said.

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she reminds me of my second wife too much

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Originally posted by Grafton:
It would make for a better show. Knocking off 10 years and five pounds of make up would help also.

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sorry, I forgot there was a bunch of old guys out there I guess I was a bit harsh, hell it is about the most interesting thing on Sunday morning.

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Originally posted by lawndart:
Turn around once, blink twice and you will be my age (49). Do it again and you will be 70. Bye then we will all be hunting in Heaven and laughiong at your aches and pains .

LD

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Originally posted by PWN375:
At least she isn't some fat, mouth breathing, Realtree clad Bubba hooting and high fiving when they shoot a deer from a corn feeder or behind some high fence operation in Texas. I never hear her say ain't, use double negatives, wear anything associated NASCAR or make the word "buck" into 2 syllables. I get so damn tired of listening to an ignorant sounding dimwits on the Bubba networks it makes me want to puke. When they kill a deer from their (insert sponsor) blind with their (insert sponsor rifle, scope and ammunition) they act like they are playing rec league softball instead of hunting. If you want to watch a show with the sound muted...try Brenda Valentine's "Buck Buster" or whatever in the hell its called. Her voice will cause epileptic seizures and she has a face that will stop an eight day clock.

Perry

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Originally posted by Lhook7:
... than Brenda hunt "boo-uuks."

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Originally posted by cats:
surestrike apparently you didn't see what she did with that poor buff's nuts!

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Originally posted by LJS:
Come on guys! Her show beats watching turkey hunt after turkey hunt and is certainly better than ESPN2 and "loudmouth bass". Yikes!!!