Texas Man Investigated For Eating Dead Bird He Found In His Yard
Ryan Adams is a food blogger based in Texas. Recently a white-winged dove flew into his living room window and died from a broken neck. Seeing an opportunity, he decided to prepare the bird as a meal and documented it on his blog.
For his trouble, he’s now being investigated by state game officials who say it’s illegal to possess a dead bird you didn’t have a license to hunt even if you didn’t cause that bird to die:
“It is illegal to possess any wildlife resource that has not been taken legally,” [Texas Parks and Wildlife spokesman Steven] Lightfoot explained [to local TV station CBS 11]. “By legal I mean there are certain means and methods… you have to have a hunting license and you have to have the appropriate weapon and ammunition.”
Lightfoot says Adams would have had the right to eat the bird if he had legally hunted it and since those weren’t the circumstances he should have turned it over to a game warden.
The state agency is now investigating Adams. While the evidence in the case has been eaten, Adams made the ‘mistake’ of posting step-by-step pictures of his “epicurean dove cook-out” on his blog.
According to Mike Riggs at Reason, Texas authorities ultimately decided not to fine Mr. Adams, but even so. Was investigating this guy for eating a bird that had died inadvertently really a good use of taxpayer resources?
I guess it would have been better to let the bird’s death go to waste, rather than enjoying it?
It reminds me of oil companies here in North Dakota being charged, criminally, under the Migratory Birds Treaty Act by hyper-partisan US Attorney Tim Purdon for a couple of dozen dead common ducks found near oil sites in the western part of the state. Apparently the MBTA is so vague that anyone causing the death of a migratory bird, even inadvertently, could be charged with a crime. Meaning, if you hit a duck with your truck you could be a federal criminal.
And we wonder why we can’t afford our government.
Tags: Asshats, big government
