A Denver District Court judge has dismissed a lawsuit opposing Colorado wildlife officials’ plan to kill black bears and mountain lions as a way of boosting mule deer populations on the West Slope.
Judge Robert McGahey, Jr., ruled that Colorado Parks and Wildlife biologists can continue with plans to cull mountain lions and black bears from the Piceance and Upper Arkansas River basins. The November decision denies claims by WildEarth Guardians that the agency’s plans violated state laws prohibiting lethal trapping methods.
Those laws — part of Colorado’s Amendment 14, which was approved by voters in 1996 — allow trapping for “bona fide scientific research.” McGahey found the two research studies met the definition of “bona fide scientific research” because they will provide new and relevant knowledge and will be carried out by qualified personnel with results suitable for publication.
The court also ruled that CPW’s research does not violate its mission to protect the public interest in wildlife.
Read more of this article at The Colorado Sun.
