NJ lawsuit update

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Doug Jeanneret (614)
888-4868 x 212

December 2, 2003 Beth Ruth
(614) 888-4868 x 214



SLDF Goes to Court, Defends New Jersey's Outdoor Heritage

Judge's Decision Preserves Hunting, Fishing, Trapping



(Columbus) - On the same day that a New Jersey judge consented to the
Sportsmen's Legal Defense Fund's (SLDF) involvement in a lawsuit to defend
outdoor sports, he dismissed the case brought by anti-hunters to suspend
hunting, fishing and trapping. The SLDF is the legal arm of the U.S.
Sportsmen's Alliance Foundation, the nation's leading sportsmen advocacy
organization.



The SLDF joined the state of New Jersey in opposing the lawsuit. On
December 1, Superior Court Judge Robert Passero ruled in favor of the SLDF's
request to intervene in the case on behalf of sportsmen. He then dismissed
the case altogether.



The lawsuit, brought by Saving Our Resources Today (SORT), a New
Jersey-based animal rights organization, alleged that the New Jersey
Division of Fish and Wildlife has issued sporting licenses to convicted
felons. To avoid future instances, the plaintiffs asked the court to
suspend all hunting, fishing and trapping licenses until a background check
system for all license buyers was put into place. SORT filed a similar
petition with the New Jersey Fish and Game Council in October. The state
and the SLDF argued that New Jersey law allows the state 60 days to respond
and the time had not yet expired. The judge concurred.



Bud Pidgeon, president and CEO of the U.S. Sportsmen's Alliance Foundation
saluted the legal defense of the Attorney General and Judge Passero's
decision.



"The anti's tried to get the court to trample the rule-making authority of
the New Jersey Fish and Game Council," Pidgeon explained. "The judge's
decision preserves its authority."



Under existing New Jersey law, it is illegal for a convicted felon to
possess or purchase a firearm. The U.S. Sportsmen's Alliance Foundation
maintains that New Jersey citizens undergo thorough criminal background
checks when purchasing firearms.



"This whole issue was simply a means of delaying the issuance of licenses
and ultimately making it harder for people to hunt, fish and trap," said
Pidgeon.



The U.S. Sportsmen's Alliance Foundation's Sportsmen's Legal Defense Fund
(SLDF) is the nation's only litigation force that exclusively represents
sportsmen's interests in the courts. It defends wildlife management and
sportsmen's rights in local, state and federal courts. The SLDF represents
the interests of sportsmen and assists government lawyers who have little or
no background in wildlife law.



--
James Ehlers

Outdoors Magazine
www.outdoorsmagazine.net