Posted on 04/13/2007 8:33:45 AM PDT by BradtotheBone
GALVESTON — After devoting much of his life to protecting wild creatures, a prominent naturalist here now faces trial on a felony charge of cruelty to animals.
Jim Stevenson, 53, a well-known bird-watcher and founder of the Galveston Ornithological Society, was indicted this week by a Galveston County grand jury on charges that he killed a feral cat Nov. 8 with a .22-caliber rifle.
"What really bothers me, this cat was down there killing endangered species of birds and others protected by law," Stevenson said in an interview Thursday. "Feral cats are not protected by law, and I stopped a cat from doing that and I get arrested."
Assistant District Attorney Bill Reed declined to discuss Stevenson's view of the law.
"All of those issues, I'm sure, will be flushed out in court," Reed said.
Stevenson, who has lived on Galveston Island since 1996, has traveled the world studying birds and published four books, including the Wildlife of Galveston. and publishes the Galveston Ornithological Society's quarterly newspaper, Gulls N Herons.
Despite his deep involvement with nature, or perhaps because of it, he has been accused of an aversion to feral cats because they prey on the birds he has studied.
Stevenson said the cat he is accused of killing had previously been captured and would have been euthanized had it not been spayed and and released.
Stevenson believes that there is no law protecting feral cats.
An official with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department has said the law is unclear.
Although he admitted in a 1999 Internet posting to killing two dozen feral cats near his island home, Stevenson told the Houston Chronicle in November that he is fond of cats.
His arrest last year surprised and saddened many environmentalists.
"Jim Stevenson is not a bad man," Dori Nelson, chair of the Seabrook Eco-Tourism Committee, told the Chronicle soon after his arrest.
The arrest came after a toll-booth worker at the San Luis Pass Bridge told police that he heard two shots fired, then saw a white van speed away with Stevenson at the wheel.
One of the toll-booth employees, who had been feeding several feral cats and considered them pets, found the dead cat and pursued Stevenson. The employee said the cat already had a limp from an earlier bullet wound.
Stevenson is free on $10,000 bail. If convicted, he faces from six months to two years in prison and a $10,000 fine.
We have a lot of feral cats in our area, in turn this gives us a lot of coyotes as they eat the feral cats, once the cats are eaten up, the coyotes head into town...
Some people like your cold hearted friend should be treated the same way they treated those poor cats.
A feral cat would NEVER be curled up on your bed.....do you know what a “feral” cat is?
Feral cats are like birds.....untamed and free to go where they want. Keep your bullets and poison away from them. Why don’t you show some humanity and compassion and help them instead of hurting and dissing them.
This pi$$es me off. I guess I’ll go home today, kill some wild birds, and feed them to my feral cats. Thanks for the idea Jim.
I'm not advocating shooting anyone's pets, but feral cats are a nuisance and a disease vector for toxoplasmosis, and ought to be done away with whenever possible.
-ccm
Feral cats can certainly end up curled up on your bed....I’ve seen it and done it. Just plain ignorance.
Just a thought....
If the cat was being fed, then it is unlikely that it was a serious thread to any birds, endangered or otherwise. I currently have four cats, and while they like to "hunt" they aren't particularly serious about it since the activity isn't required for food. In over 15 years I've had to rescue one starling (shoulda let the cat eat it).
There’s plenty of room! They could make bigger cans or bags. :)
a serious thread = a serious threat
Seems some folks have trouble with the “shut up” part.
The responses to this thread should reinforce why it’s there.
they are not protected in most states....same as dogs running deer can be shot in most states. Local municipalities of course have different rules...
I have liked individual (and owned) cats....most I dont like. if they do damage on my property I usually trap and release them FAR AWAY. if they come back or are vicious??? well thats another story.
ps it would be wise to remove feral birds like starlings and english sparrows (both released here from eurpean stock)..they have decimated native species of songbirds and are unwelcome on my property.
We are getting rabies alerts about cats, neighborhood by neighborhood now. The warnings come with instructions to call the health department if you have had ANY contact with an unknown animal. What kid isn’t going to pet a cat that walks into the yard. And there are feral cats everywhere in Florida! I’ve seen people driving around servicing feeding stations they’ve set up. I will start taking down licence plate numbers. Not good. Not good at all. Of course, that problem should not be solved with a .22.
OF course they CAN....but, as this article describes the “feeder” did NOT take the feral cat home......don’t worry....I’m a kitty lover.....just not a feral kitty lover.
Well, my daughter’s rowing team found a litter of abandon kittens near the docks where she rowed. We’ve had the cat for a year, since she was about 3-4 weeks old. When we had her spayed, the vet’s staff called her feral. Is that a feral cat?
“What are you in for?”
Ooooh, those Texas prisons!
A feral cat is a WILD cat that has NOT been rescued in my book. SHEESH....once it’s “owned” it ain’t feral!
We rescued 2 kitties 18 years ago whose mother had been killed by a car (last one died last year)
Or perhaps, the poor little kitties got what they had coming to them? They ambush birds at bird feeders without the poor innocent birds knowing what happened to them.
The poor birds were just gathering food and twigs to feed their poor innocent chicks, but then, came your precious "mew mew" to rip the heads off these poor birds, those spew blood and screams to be heard by the poor innocent, and now motherless baby chicks.
Here comes along "a guy who knows a guy", with his air rifle, to do just what sweet "mew mew" has done to those poor birds...BAM!...one shot to the head.
No hungry cat terrorizing the neighborhood, and more birds for the people to enjoy. It's a win-win!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.