A family in North Idaho needs our help.

The barebones facts of the case are these -

1. In May 2011, a grizzly sow with two cubs entered the property of Jeremy Hill and family. Mr Hill, his wife, Rachel, and their six children were at home, at the time. The children were outside playing when the grizzlies appeared on the Hill property.
2. The grizzly sow was at the pen where the Hill's four pigs were kept when first seen.
3. As the grizzly sow climbed the fence to get into the pig pen, Jeremy Hill shot her the first time and she tumbled off the pen. Her next move was to charge toward the Hill home and Jeremy Hill shot her again. Wounded and down, Jeremy Hill then shot her a third time, killing her.
4. Fish and Game was called and did assure Hill that his actions were justified. The two cubs had run away when the sow was shot the first time; they have not been found.
5. U.S. Fish and Game was notified of the shooting of the grizzly; they did not show up until long after the incident.
6. In early August 2011 Jeremy Hill was charged with poaching by a U.S. Attorney.

The Hill family needs our support. The actions of the U.S. Attorney are outrageous, and, if allowed to get away with this, simply because the Hill family does not have the money to fight the charge, anyone, confronted by a wolf or grizzly on their property, having to defend their family, their livestock, their home or their property, will find themselves in this same situation.

The Hill family needs money to pay legal fees. If you can help, the following are the banks where that can be accomplished. Sends checks made out to the Jeremy Hill Benefit Account to -

Wells Fargo Bank
6764 Main Street
Bonners Ferry, ID 83805

Pretty sad commentary on our "authorities" eh - Roni Bell Sylvester

this kind of thing is unbelievable - guess it's ok to let the children be attacked - cimages

http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2011/aug/24/not-guilty-plea-entered-in-federal-case-of-shot/

Not guilty plea entered in federal case of shot grizzly
Officials, many in community question prosecution of father
By Becky Kramer The Spokesman-Review

A Boundary County man pleaded not guilty Tuesday to unlawfully killing a female grizzly bear in his yard.

So many friends and family members showed up to support Jeremy M. Hill at his arraignment that the hearing was forced to move into a larger room at the U.S. Courthouse in Coeur d’Alene. Hill, 33, faces one charge of killing a grizzly – a federally protected species.

Supporters said that Hill, a father of six, acted responsibly in shooting the female grizzly on May 8, which appeared with two cubs in the yard of his home near Porthill, Idaho, while his children were playing outside.

“It seems unjust to me that someone would be charged when they were protecting their family,” state Sen. Shawn Keough, R-Sandpoint, said after the hearing. “I’m at a loss to understand why the U.S. government is pursuing this in the manner they are.”

After shooting the grizzly with a bolt-action rifle, Hill contacted the Idaho Department of Fish and Game.

“Jeremy did the right thing, he called Fish and Game,” Keough said. “I think that prosecuting this case really sets back the grizzly bear recovery effort. … People are saying, ‘Boy, if that happened to me, there’s no way that I’d report it.’ That’s a human reaction.”

Hill’s wife and six children – the oldest is 14 and the youngest is an infant – attended the arraignment. The family declined to comment.

A jury trial has been scheduled for Oct. 4. If convicted of illegally killing a federally protected species, Hill faces penalties of up to a year in prison and fines of up to $50,000.

The Hills’ Porthill home lies between two federal grizzly bear recovery zones – the Selkirk zone to the west and Cabinet-Yaak zone to the east. Roughly 100 grizzlies are believed to inhabit the zones, which include parts of Idaho, British Columbia and Montana.

Grizzlies are a controversial topic in Boundary County, where protecting their habitat has led to Forest Service road closures and some timber harvest restrictions. In recent years, a collaborative effort called the Kootenai Valley Resource Initiative has worked to reduce conflicts between people and bears.

Ronald Smith, chairman of the Boundary County Commission, said he’s dismayed that Hill faces prosecution. County commissioners support grizzly bear recovery efforts, saying a recovered population will ease land-use restrictions, but charging Hill doesn’t make sense, Smith said.

“Jeremy Hill … has been falsely accused of a crime that did not happen,” Smith said in a statement. “… We feel that at all costs, this man has the obligation and responsibility to protect his children. This is not some flagrant or malicious act.”

Assistant U.S. Attorney Nancy Cook declined to comment on the case.

Community members raised $19,558 for the Hill family last week at a 4-H animal sale in Bonners Ferry. Hill’s 14-year-old daughter, Jasmine, was selling a pig she raised named Regina. Bidders bought and sold Regina 15 times, with the final bidder giving the pig back to Jasmine Hill, saving it from a trip to the butcher.

“It was a statement – we’re with you, Jeremy,” said Rob Pluid, of Bonners Ferry, who helped organize the continuous bidding.

Accounts for the family have been set up at Mountain West Bank, Wells Fargo and Panhandle State Bank, said Donna Capurso, chairwoman of the Boundary County Republican Central Committee.

Meanwhile, Boundary County commissioners sent letters to Idaho’s congressional delegation and state legislators, asking for support for Hill. They also issued a news release, saying that Idaho Fish and Game officials had recommended against filing charges in the case, and that local U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service officials had concurred.

Chip Corsi, Idaho Fish and Game’s regional manager, declined to comment on his agency’s stance on charges, but said: “He had three grizzly bears in close proximity to his kids, family and livestock. He had reason to believe there was a threat.”

Joan Jewett, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in Portland, said she couldn’t comment on the case specifically. In general, however, “we do an investigation and turn over our information and evidence to the U.S. Attorney’s office and the U.S. Attorney makes the decision on whether to prosecute or not.”

NOTE: In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. section 107, any copyrighted material herein is distributed without profit or payment to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving this information for non-profit research and educational purposes only. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml
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LAW USA Editor's note:
The ESA has existing language which exempts Jeremy Hill. Secretary Salazar should exercise his authority to completely release Mr. Hill and his family, AND fully compensate the Hill family for the tribulations they've been un-necessarily subjected to.
Here it is in specific.
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Exceptions in Treaties
There are prohibitions of the killing (taking) of species except when: " For the purpose of protecting against injury to persons or property…" Conservation of Migratory Birds and Their Environment, Article II (d), 1978

You may read the entire research by Ric Frost here:ESA May Not Supersede Any Existing Law

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