Defenders of Wildlife Applauds Court Ruling
Without comment, the high court today turned down an appeal by two North Carolina ranchers and two counties in the state. They contended that the Constitution doesn’t authorize regulations prohibiting landowners from killing endangered red wolves that wander onto private property from a federal refuge.
The ranchers were challenging a ruling by the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that upheld the regulations issued under the Endangered Species Act. Defenders of Wildlife, a leading conservation organization, opposed the appeal of that ruling.
"The Supreme Court has once again declined -- despite the urging of Bush election lawyer Ted Olson -- to rule against the Endangered Species Act's constitutionality. As it has in the past, the court today upheld the strong national interest in protection of imperiled wildlife species," said William Snape, Defenders of Wildlife’s vice president of law and litigation.
Mike Senatore, director of the Defenders of Wildlife legal department, said, "In refusing to take this case, the Supreme Court left in place the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeal's exceptional ruling upholding the constitutionality of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's regulation prohibiting the indiscriminate killing or ‘taking’ of endangered red wolves. Had the high court decided to review and ultimately reverse the lower court's ruling, the implications would have extended well beyond the red wolf.
The federal government could have been rendered powerless under the Endangered Species Act to prohibit the indiscriminate killing on private lands of the more than 1,200 U.S. threatened and endangered species. The Supreme Court's decision is also significant because it's the second time the high court has refused an opportunity to address the constitutionality of the Endangered Species Act’s ‘take’ prohibition. Our hope is that it will also be their last."
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Defenders of Wildlife is a leading nonprofit conservation organization recognized as one of the nation’s most progressive advocates for wildlife and its habitat. With more than 425,000 members and supporters, Defenders of Wildlife is an effective leader on endangered species issues.
Contact(s):
Cat Lazaroff, (202) 772-3270