Effort to stop deer hunt seen as long shot

Animal-rights group files motion with state DEP

By: David Weinstein
   What may be the final effort by a local animal-rights group to stop Princeton Township and its hired firm from baiting and shooting deer on municipal, county and private property will likely have no impact on plans to kill 250 deer this winter, those involved said this week.
   A motion filed by attorney Neilsen Lewis to stay — or halt — the township’s recent approval of the deer hunt, and the state law that allows for community-based deer management, was submitted early this week to the state Department of Environmental Protection, department spokeswoman Sharon Southard confirmed Thursday.
   But Mr. Lewis, who represents several animal-rights groups opposing the law and the hunt, including the Mercer County Deer Alliance, said he is not optimistic about stopping the hunt.
   "We would not be surprised if they deny the motion," Mr. Lewis said.
   Township Attorney Edwin Schmierer said Wednesday that the township will move ahead with plans to usher in sharpshooters from White Buffalo by the end of the month or in early February, to begin the planned six-week hunt.
   "I don’t expect they will delay us," said Mr. Schmierer about the DEP.
   The Fish and Game Council — a regulatory and permit-issuing branch of the state Division of Fish, Game and Wildlife, which falls under the auspices of the DEP — on Dec. 12 approved the township’s plans to hire White Buffalo of Hamden, Conn. for the purpose of thinning by lethal means the township deer herd, estimated at 1,625.
   The council is expected to hear Mr. Neilsen’s motion Tuesday.
   Other than to say the motion had been received, Ms. Southard said the department would have no comment on the matter because it relates to pending litigation filed by Mr. Lewis.
   That lawsuit claims that the state law that allows for community deer management — first adopted as a Fish and Game Council policy document in 1998 — violates state law by giving too much authority to municipalities, Mr. Lewis said.
   The lawsuit, like the motion, is not Princeton-specific — but is proceeding, Mr. Lewis said.
   It was filed in March 1999 in the Appellate Division of the state Superior Court. Briefs could be filed in the next month or two, Mr. Lewis said.
   Amendments have been added to the original appeal, including one relating to the bill signed into law by Gov. Christie Whitman in June 2000, which gave the council authority to grant municipalities special permits for local deer management. Another amendment, Mr. Lewis said, came after the council approved the township’s plan in December.
   "We are challenging the state program and any enabling statutes enacted since we filed our lawsuit," Mr. Lewis said.
   Princeton Township is aiming to trim its deer herd by 1,100 over a five-year period.