Judge Rules in Favor of Trappers in Maine Lynx Lawsuit

The Maine lynx lawsuit has finally reached a conclusion.  After over a year of litigation and a six-day trial this past spring and summer, federal judge John Woodcock issued a 30 page ruling yesterday, which put an end to the current efforts of animal rights activists to ban many forms of trapping in northern Maine.  Here’s what you need to know:

“The Court denies the Plaintiffs’ request for permanent injunction against the state of Maine’s current trapping regulations because it finds that the Plaintiffs have failed to prove the Canada lynx as a species will suffer irreparable harm if the injunction is not granted.”

The case has a long, drawn out history (you can find more background here), and has resulted in lots of changes in the way trapping is carried out in northern Maine.  New trapping regulations have restricted many of the traditional practices Maine trappers have used successfully for years without harming lynx populations.  However, these changes may have been necessary to keep from losing the lawsuit.

In the end, the Judge ruled in favor of the testimony of Dr. Ken Elowe, of the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, rather than the opinions of the animal rights group’s witnesses.  Solid scientific information gained through years of lynx research paid off for the Department and for trappers.

Here are a few more excerpts from Judge Woodcock’s ruling:

“Each trapping season, the current state of regulation in Maine has the effect of tolerating the incidental takes of a certain number of lynx, an intolerable state of affairs to animal rights advocates.  Twice in the last three years, they have come to federal court seeking declaratory relief and injunctions against Maine laws and regulations.”

“To prevent further incidental takes of Canada lynx, AWI sought the issuance of a permanent injunction against the state of Maine, and in mid-April and late June, 2009, the Court held six days of hearing in which the parties presented exhaustive testimonial and documentary evidence.  Following the hearing, AWI expressly asked for injunctive relief that would “(1) prohibit the use of leghold traps on land in the identified lynx WMDs as well as in WMD 7 where . . . lynx have been identified as present and have been trapped; and (2) prohibit the use of killer-type traps with an opening of more than four inches in both ground and elevated sets.”

” To the extent the case has been a battle of the experts, the Court has relied on Dr. Elowe’s testimony over the testimony of both Dr. Paquet and Ms. Fox.”

“The Court finds AWI’s generic evidence and speculative inferences much less convincing than IF&W’s specific records and finds Dr. Elowe’s testimony more convincing than the opinions of either Dr. Paquet or Ms. Fox.”

Maine trappers can finally relax a bit and start trapping without worry that their season could be shut down……at least for the forseeable future.  All trappers and outdoorspeople owe a huge debt of gratitude to all of those who worked so hard to fight this lawsuit.  As a trapper who started out in northern Maine, I thank you all for your hard work and dedication to the end.