Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Idaho bill would prohibit state from penalizing wolf kills

An Idaho house member has filed a bill that would prohibit any state official or agency from investigating, penalizing, or helping the feds penalize anyone who kills a wolf. It's got some teeth in it, too, with a $500 fine for violations. I hope this passes.

Lawmaker�s plan would let
wolf kills go unpunished
BOISE � A northern Idaho lawmaker says the
state should not punish people who kill federally
protected gray wolves.
Republican Rep. Phil Hart unveiled legislation
Friday to prohibit the state from investigating,
arresting or prosecuting any person who kills a
gray wolf in Idaho. The bill would also prohibit
state employees from helping federal agencies
arrest or prosecute someone who kills a wolf.
Those who punish, or help punish, people who
kill wolves face a $500 civil penalty under the
measure.

Good idea. Fight em in the courts using States' rights. Hope they do the same in Montana and Wyoming

I just read that the USFWS has proposed hiring the Idaho Fish and Game to monitor wolves. I don't know if this bill would prohibit that or not. I wouldn't think so as long as the IDFG didn't do anything when one was killed. It could sure put them in a tough spot, though, when a collared wolf was illegally killed.

I cannot appreciate all the implications, but fighting Federal intrusion, through State Laws, seems like a good idea.

It is essential to put "big government" meddling in everything on notice and to keep it at bay.

Thanks for the heads up. I'll drop my Rep. a email in support of this bill.

Help me out with the legal semantics. How is a 500 dollar fine imposed by the state a "civil penalty"?

Ask your friendly neighborhood newspaper reporter.

I think, and I'm just guessing here, it's a penalty that's not called a felony or misdemeanor. It's like the civil penalty that's added to a fine for poaching to compensate for the value of the animal. It doesn't go on your record.

A civil penalty or forfeiture is like the award in a lawsuit. It's not criminal, and it only has to be proved by a preponderance of the evidence rather than beyond reasonable doubt.

Thanks to both of you for the education.

Also, since a civil penalty isn't criminal, being hit with one won't affect your right to own guns.

I like the spirit of the idea, but simply can not see that one flying. Much as we dislike big government intervention, there are times when the various state/fed agencies simply must cooperate. Building a wall between them over selective issues simply will not work.

Hear! Hear! Great idea [Idaho state - Republican] Rep Hart.

The damm feds are not omnipotent.

The 'PEOPLE' through their inidividual states are!

Remains to be seen.

Kindof like a "sanctuary state" for wolf killers, that worked pretty well for the illegal alien apologists, why not?

The feds broke a number of laws, including the ESA, in this introduction. It's time for us to fight back.