Proposed New York bill is absolutely criminal
By Gene Mueller
Published February 23, 2005

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New York hunters are in an uproar over state assembly Bill 1850 that would
make sport hunting a punishable act of animal cruelty.
The bill, introduced by Assemblyman Alexander Grannis, New York City
Democrat, would revise the state's definition of animal cruelty to include
the "killing or injuring [of] wild game and wild birds." The revision would
make hunting and trapping activities criminal offenses. The bill is now
being considered before the body's Agriculture Committee.
"The bill creates a contradiction in the law [because] the state code
allows regulated hunting," said Tony Celebrezze of the U.S. Sportsmen's
Alliance, a national watchdog group that is ready to enter the fray whenever
Americans' right to hunt is challenged. "If [this] becomes law, anti-hunters
will have a field day ensuring that sportsmen are prosecuted on animal
cruelty charges."
The proposal is similar to a Texas bill that also would turn everyday
hunters into criminals. Hunters in Iowa and Connecticut also have had to
defeat animal cruelty bills that threatened hunting with dogs.