BOWHUNTERCOP

TODAYS STAR-LEDGER REPORTED THAT IN DENVILLE, MORRIS COUNTY, NJ THAT A BLACK BEAR IN THE WEIGHT RANGE OF 250-300 POUNDS WAS STRUCK BY A CAR. LOCAL POLICE REQUSTED THAT THE NJ FISH AND WILDLIFE RESPONDE, BUT THEY STATED THAT THEY USED UP THERE OVERTIME BUDGET. THE NEXT MORNING WITH THE BEAR STILL INJURED, THE LOCAL POLICE ONCE AGAIN REQUESTED THAT THE NJ FISH & GAME RESPONDE, THEY STATED THEY HAVE OTHER THINGS TO DO, AND TOLD LOCAL POLICE TO TAKE THE BEAR DOWN, WHICH THEY DID.

NOW, I LIKE TO KNOW IS WHERE THE HELL IS OUR HUNTING DOLLARS GOING TO? ISN'T UP TO FISH AND GAME TO TAKE THE BEAR DOWN? IF THE BEAR SHOWED SIGNS OF OR ACTING IN A BAD WAY KILLING OR INJURYING A PERSON, PET, LIVESTOCK OR BREAK INTO HOMES THEN I KNOW LOCAL POLICE CAN TAKE IT DOWN, I'M A COP MYSELF, WHAT IF THE LOCAL POLICE HAD OTHER EMERGENCY CALLS? ALSO WHAT IF OVER NIGHT THIS BEAR WHO IS HURTING STARTED HURTING PEOPLE? NOW WHO IS RESPONSABLE LOCAL POLICE OR FISH & GAME? THE NJ FISH & GAME NEEDS TO TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE WILDLIFE, AND THEY HAVE A JOB TO DO, SAYING THAT THEY ARE OVER THE OVERTIME BUDGET IS BULLSH*T, AND THEN SAY THAT THEY HAVE BETTER THINGS TO DO THEN TO HELP WITH A BEAR BOTH ARE POOR BULLSH*T EXCUSES. WE THE NEW JERSEY HUNTERS DON'T NEED THIS, WE HAVE ENOUGH PROBLEMS.

Tomster

This does not surprise me. I work in Jersey City but live in PA and one day I found a hurt Red Tail Hawk in Jersey City, along the Hudson river. The wind was very stong that day and it blew the bird into a building.

I called NJ Fish and Game and they told me they do not come out and get hurt birds but to either call the local police or get it to a Raptor rehabilitation center. We ended up calling the Liberty Science Center who had a Raptor Exhibit and a guy from there came and picked up the bird and too care of it. The only thing they did tell me was that it was illegal for me to take that bird to PA, since I know of a wildlife rehabilitation center near me in PA. They were more interested in me taking that bird over to PA versus taking care of it here in NJ.

jbc

Local police are responsible. This is part of the "Whitman non-bear control" plan. Plus, DEP is constantly cutting costs and many of the biologists have so much comp time from chasing bears around last year that they have to use by July 04.

This is a good thing. I don't want my hunting fees paying for bear control because proper seasons were not established years ago when they could have been more effective. Local police in "bear country" have been trained and should be able to handle it. Every year towns in bear country pay thousands and thousands of dollars for bear control.

BTW, bear incidents reported to local police are not reported to the division. This is one of the reasons Incidents are down from year to year.

BOWHUNTERCOP

As far as the local PD, we are responsiable for the bear if it shows that it had made threats towards people, pets, and or livestock by either attacking, or breaking into homes, thats it. The Denville police had no way of knowing how badly the bear was hurt and they have other work to be done, other then the bear. It's the NJF&W job to take care of the bear's health, not the police. Should the local police call NJF&W to do there job when they pull cars over, and say to them that there over the overtime budget, and that they have other things to do?

As far as the staff at NJF&W having to much comp time and have to use it by July 2004 is false. I'm a state officer myself, your allowed when working overtime to either ask for comp time, cash, or break it down to 50% cash, and 50% comp your choice. Also your allowed up to 100hrs. of comp time, but if you go over they don't say nothin. It's just none sense, lazziness on the staff of NJF&W.

If that was averege Joe, and he saw the bear injured in his yard, and he shot it, you bet the NJF&W would be at his front door within 1 hour charging him for disscharge of a firearm, and taking of wildlife without a permit, and out of season. I say this, you get paid for a job, then do it.

jbc

Bowhuntercop,

You are misinformed. NJ F&W is not the problem. It is the politics and cuts of the DEP and state that is not letting them do thier jobs. There is no "cash option" for overtime for these people. They must use it or lose it. Blame politics, not the workers of the state. More cuts are coming.

A bear that is injured by a car should be put down. Peroid. We're not talking about Bald Eagles, we are swimming in them. We don't need to waste money rehabilitating bears that are practically vermin.

BOWHUNTERCOP

I never said the bear should be taken care of. What I said was that its up to the NJF&W to make the decsion that the bear should be killed, we the police arent trained in the field of the health of animales. I agree that any animale hit buy a car should be killed, but its up to NJF&W, they are the care takers of the wildlife. As far as the overtime, if one would like comp time, cash or 50% each, well all state departments fall under the same. I've been a sate officer for 8yrs. its been the same for those years.

Also i wrote and emailed the same letter to the NJF&W yesterday letting them know how surprised i was of there actions. They replied back to me stating that they are sorry and that they should of responed after the first call.

jbc

BHC,

You're talking about the CO's, which are spread extremely thin. I was talking about the bear professionals and biologists who respond to the majority of bear related calls.

Police in "bear country" are fully authorized to dispatch animals. Bear, deer, whatever. I would guess millions of dollars and thousands of police hours are wasted in this state every year taking care of a huge overpopulation of bear. If the state would let science prevail over politics we could take care of this problem.

Blame the politicians. VOTE!!!

Ruddyduck

Sounds like a case of either passing the buck for the sake of political correctness,lack of common sense or squimishness or a little of all three.
It doesn't take a brain surgeon to know when an animal, dear,bear,dog,or cat needs to be put down,but I suppose it's better to try to pass the buck than to ruffle the feathers of a few peta/treehugger types with their tender feelings who might have been witnesses and the lawyer waiting in the wings for that "traumatic " legal case.
I'm willing to bet that was the main problem in this incident.

Tomster

I just wanted to throw in my 2 cents here...

The problem is this, how does NJF&G do it's job when it does not have either the personnell or pay them OT when necessary?? They use the police to do it.

Whenever I have a problem in PA with a Bear, I call the Game Commission. There are Game Wardens and Deputy Game Wardens in my county, some I know and they carry pistols. If you try getting the local cops, they are part time and unfortunately hard to get since they are probably out in their cars patroling. We have 3 part time cops in my town. This year, I had a bear attack my rabbit coop but did't get in. I did not shoot it but rather shot my 22 in the air to chase it off. After I called the PAGC, they were at my house 15 minutes later.

My point here is, NJ is using the local cops to handle the job Game Wardens should be doing. It sounds like it's because of funding issues. This is deffinately a problem since police officers are not game handlers and what happens after a cops shoots a bear, file a report with NJF&C and leaves the carcess there to rot?

The Game Wardens in PA are not paid a lot of money, but they perform an important function. Something needs to be done and it maybe that more state or private funding, higher liscense fees, or other types of funding is necessary to increase funding and hirer the wardens so they can do their jobs versus using the police.

T

ironmine

Fish & Wildlife said they told Denville to kill the bear right at the start. She said she had no idea why Denville waited to kill the poor thing.

There is no hospital to bring an adult bear.

Dnville's animal control officer is an animal rights person. I'm figuring she spent the time trying to mount some kind of big rescue of the bear and get her name in the papers again. But, of course, there was nothing that could be done, and the bear suffered for no reason.

Denville was instructed to kill the bear immediately.

Jim