Violence against pigeon shoot protestors escalates, activist struck in hit-and-run
In the minds of those who oppose pigeon shooting in Pennsylvania, there is no justice for pigeons who are getting blown out of the sky at close range with increasing frequency lately
Violence against pigeon shoot protestors escalates, activist struck in hit-and-run
Amy Worden, Inquirer Staff Writer
In the minds of those who oppose pigeon shooting in Pennsylvania, there is no justice for pigeons who are getting blown out of the sky at close range with increasing frequency lately.
But is there also no justice for those who seek to protect them?
The level of attacks against the small band of inviduals who have been demonstrating - by all accounts - peacefully on public roadways in Berks and Bucks counties (which, along with Dauphin County, are the last three counties where pigeon shoots are known to take place) has escalated over the past six months.
What began with racial slurs, then a bodily threat with a gun, followed by a bloody attack with the buckle end of a dog leash and now, just hours ago, an apparent hit-and-run that sent a protestor to the hospital.
Why do pigeon shooters feel emboldened to act with such brazen abandon? Because - despite repeated and documented assaults available for the world to see on YouTube - these individuals have not yet been charged with any serious crimes.
Neither the Berks County District Attorney John Adams nor Bucks County District Attorney David Heckler has pursued assault charges against anyone involved in the incidents.
Nor will either prosecutor let cruelty charges proceed against shooters who leave wounded birds to die. Under the state animal cruelty statute, not providing veterinary care to a sick or injured animal is a crime.
Two decades of efforts to ban pigeon shooting through legislation has so far failed, but a bill made a landmark leap out of the Senate Judiciary Committee earlier this year and remains alive in the legislature.
The NRA backs the shoots and has come out strongly against the bill, despite the feeling of many hunters that firing at birds launched from spring-loaded traps at close range does not constitute hunting. And, they say, leaving wounded birds to die violates the traditional hunter's code that you do not allow your prey to suffer.
The film of Saturday's incident at Wing Pointe in Hamburg, Berks County, shows a mini-van driving at high speed veering off the road and onto the grass directly into the camera, which was being handled by Steve Hindi, founder of the group Showing Animals Respect and Kindness (SHark).
Hindi was taken to a local hospital with a hand injury, the group said in a press release. SHark also said the driver of the mini van was apprehended by state police who were at the scene.
The group says it will continue its protest on Sunday.
Stay tuned for more.
Comment removed.- I bet they Jay walked too!!!!!! How do you know they didnt have permission to be there?
— OldWhiteandRich - Wing Pointe is not private property it is a resort for bird shooters. I know exactly where it is. Do you live there? Did you go to the website and read all about this place. If not, keep your comments to the facts. And to your comment that if you don't respect the law you can't be protected from lawlessness - did you ever hear of "two wrongs don't make a right"?. ANimal cruelty is AGAINST THE LAW. Pigeon shooting is first class animal cruelty. Period. Have you ever witnessed a pigeon shoot??? Have you seen dying birds gasping for breath? Have you seen boys stomping and maiming half dead birds? I guess you teach your kids to kick and stomp kittens and puppies too? Don't tell me about pigeon shoots - I lived near a gun club where they took place and witnessed the massacre of birds. This is not sportsmanship and I will be among the next group of protesters there next time. There is a reason that 49 other states in the USA have outlawed this practice. It's because it is animal abuse. Shoot clay discs. They are readily available for target practice. Real hunters track and shoot game for food. They don't kill for fun. They don't teach kids that killing for fun is ok either. — lrusch2
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- That's your comeback? Dude left off an 'e'???? Lame. — OldWhiteandRich
- Protesters should not complain if they get injured during protests. If they get injured, maybe next time they will simply mind their own business....protesters are the trouble makers- not the other way around.— kelprod2
- Strange that you say that, consider slavery, for example. It used to be that an "owner" of dog could beat the living s*** out of the dog, law changed that, and would think that you would interfere if you saw your neighbor beating his dog. — bucky95
- So any peaceful protestor should just shut up if they are attacked? You are a whack job! Anyone that attacks another person HAS broken the law. — SP111
- Protests are perfectly legal and as long as the protesters are not being violent they are not breaking the law. I have witnessed pigeon shoots because I lived near a gun club and they are cruel and inhumane. If I was free that day I would have been up at Wing Pointe myself. Anyone who would try and hurt a protester just exemplifies WHO is the real bully and violent person. Pigeon shooters are not hunters. They are gamblers who want to kill birds to win money. Period. My young daughter was horrified the first time we drove by a pigeon shoot on the way home to see the road and fields littered with maimed birds. I guess you wouldn't mind if your kid stomped a kitten or puppy to death right? Well, it starts small and escalates. Real hunters give their GAME a chance to escape in their own natural habitat and only hunt for FOOD. Killing for fun is WRONG. And you can say all you want, but your comment just shows that you think killing animals for fun is OK. Blasting a tiny bird with a shotgun that is meant to kill deer or bear is not a sport. It is killing for fun. It is cruel, inhumane, and shows the person with the gun has no regard for life or the fact that these poor gentle defenseless birds die a slow and painful death. And having young kids participate in this is despicable. — lrusch2
- "If they get injured, maybe next time they will simply mind their own business....protesters are the trouble makers- not the other way around."
These are the kind of lunatics that are involved things like these pigeon shoots, gangs, and flash mobs. If you complain or are a snitch they threaten you as way to intimidate and bully. Time to put this type of trash in jail.— RussOCNJ - The only lunatics are the pigeon shooters. You obviously have no heart. Birds feel pain, and pigeons are gentle birds. Why do they need to kill them for fun? That is what is wrong with society. Teach kids that killing is fun - whether it be video games or live pigeon shooting - then they grow up to kill people and everyone wonders WHY this happened. It's because they are taught no regard for LIFE. I watched a documentary of primitive natives in AFrica. They are the only tribe that hunts their prey on foot. They run the animal down til it is exhausted - and so are they. Before they kill it they thank their God and do some kind of religious ceremony over the animal. I watched the hunter stroke the animal kindly, realizing he had to kill it to bring meat back to his tribe for food. What I am getting at is that the hunt was fair - he caught the animal and he gave respect to the animal for putting up a good fight. The hunt was for the sole purpose of providing food for the tribe. NOT FUN or gambling or to win money. That is my point. So if protesters show up GOOD FOR THEM. Any pigeon shooter who gets violent towards them should be arrested. It shows who has the VIOLENT nature. Real hunters know how to respect their game AND others. — lrusch2
- Laws should be enforced - clear and simple. I would expect the NRA would support enforcement of proper hunting and not some actions like shooting an animal from a spring-loaded trap. That sounds little better than Duck Hunt but with real ammunition. Leaving an animal to
die slowly on the side of the road and moving on to the next target does not seem like a battle the NRA should fight. A defense of legitimate hunting and gun rights issues, honestly, would win many more hearts and minds.
I'm neither a fan of nor against hunting - hunters probably have a better understanding of the origin of our food and I have had venison jerky (I don't really like the taste, but that has nothing to do with the deer or the hunter). I also don't have the full story here, but from the hunters I have met, their intent is the sport of the kill and in most cases, getting some good eats either for themselves or for donation. Shooting a pigeon out of a trap seems, at the very least, plain lazy and there is nothing sportsman-like about it. Defending this real-life, video game hunting just diminishes in the minds of many people the legitimacy of other cases NRA decides to support, such as the right to own arms and use them in a responsible manner. Killing just to kill is be appalling.— gfstallin - Pigeon shoots are not hunting. They are for the lazy wannabe hunters and they are 'teaching' their lazy children how to abuse animals. There is every reason for people to protest this barbaric activity. Anyone who takes part in these shoots is less than human. Anyone trying to stop it from happening or at least protesting, is far and away a better person than anyone shooting a bird sprung from a box.— scargosun
- Look at the mentality of the pigeon killers toward peaceful protesters --- racial slurs, threats with a gun, hitting a protester with the buckle end of a dog leash, a hit and run! And the D.A.'s and prosecutors won't do anything about it! How true--the mentality of the pigeon killers is sure on the low side. Think of what this is teaching the children that go to these pigeon shoots (and there are, unfortunately many)--kill and maime animals and when people speak out against animal abuse, show the kids how to "handle" people that are doing nothing except trying to stop animal abuse. When is this going to stop??!! PA is the ONLY state that allows these cruel pigeon shoots, but then, central PA was (is--there's still too many) the "puppy-mill capital of the U.S., so what should I expect!!??— brewjaz
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