Nebraska Trappers Can Trap Roadside Ditches Once Again

A two year old bill that banned trapping in roadside ditches in Nebraska has now been overturned.

Concerns over trapping non-target animals motivated the original bill’s passing, but problems with flooding and land damage have proven the need for trapping to resume in these areas.  Individual counties still have the right to ban roadside trapping within their jurisdictional areas.

Read the AP story here.

On a related note, Nebraska’s KOTA News site posted the story on their site with an absolutely outrageous opening line:

YOU HAD BETTER WATCH YOUR STEP WHILE TAKING A WALK IN THE COUNTRYSIDE FROM NOW ON.

TODAY STATE LAWMAKERS GAVE FINAL APPROVAL TO A BILL THAT WILL ALLOW TRAPPERS TO CATCH VARMINTS IN NEBRASKA’S ROADSIDE DITCHES.

The ingnorance in this statement is absolutely unbelievable, and leads an unknowing public to believe that it is now dangerous to ‘walk in the countryside’ because trapping is legal here.

Trapping poses no public safety hazard, despite what KOTA would have you believe.

Also, the majority of the active public does not spend their free time walking around roadside ditches.  Instead, they frequent hiking trails and more peaceful, pleasant locations, which trappers tend to avoid.

KOTA’s statement is ignorant and malicious and shows absolutely no journalistic integrity.

Kudos to Senator Mark Christensen for introducing and fighting for the new bill, and shame on KOTA for some of the worst reporting I’ve seen in some time.

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