Falconers sentenced for bartering state goshawk
Two falconers were sentenced March 2 for violations of the Lacey Act and other offenses for their roles in the illegal barter of a wild northern goshawk taken from a nest in Wisconsin.
James Kitzman, 69, of Oak Creek, who took the young bird from the nest on state land in Vilas County, was fined $15,000 and ordered not to engage in falconry for three years.
Edward Taylor of Fruitport, Michigan, who accepted the goshawk from Kitzman and later lied about it to authorities, received a fine of $10,000 and was ordered to forfeit the bird.
The sentences were handed down in federal district court in Madison. They resulted from a 2017 investigation between the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources Bureau of Law Enforcement, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services Office of Law Enforcement.
The Lacey Act is a federal law enforced by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
that makes it illegal to knowingly transport or sell wildlife taken in violation of state, federal, tribal and foreign laws or regulations.
When the Lacey Act was passed in 1900, it became the first federal law to protect wildlife. It enforces civil and criminal penalties for the illegal trade of animals and plants.
Licensed falconers can take birds from the wild and keep them for hunting.
But they can't sell or barter the birds. Northern goshawks, like hundreds of species, are also protected by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act.
As in so many outdoor pursuits, a code of ethics plays a large role in abiding by laws and protecting the resource.
Case documents show on May 26, 2017, Kitzman took from the wild a young female northern goshawk from a nest located on state land in Vilas County.
Kitzman then gave the bird to Taylor across state lines. The illegal act was an effort to repay Taylor for earlier providing Kitzman with a captive-bred Finnish goshawk.
Both Taylor and Kitzman filled out false reports with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources in an attempt to cover up their actions.
Kitzman told his associates to “keep it hush-hush and not tell anybody” that he was giving the female northern goshawk to Taylor, according to information released by investigators. Kitzman also told Taylor to use a false cover story if ever asked by authorities about how the northern goshawk was taken and transferred.
Kitzman paid the $15,000 fine at the March 2 sentencing; the money will be donated to the Lacey Act Reward Fund.
Taylor was ordered to transfer the illegally taken northern goshawk to
USFWS officials so it could be placed with a wildlife rehabilitator for its eventual release back into the wild.
Waterfowl hearings
The DNR will hold public hearings this week to collect input on regulations, season dates and bag limits for ducks, Canada geese and other migratory game birds for the 2020 hunting seasons.
The hearings begin at 7 p.m. and will be held:
Monday at the DNR Service Center, 3550 Mormon Coulee Road, La Crosse.
Tuesday at AmeriVU Inn and Suites, 1710 South Main Street, Rice Lake.
Wednesday at Fox Valley Technical College, D.J. Bordini Center, 5 N. Systems Drive, Appleton.
Thursday at Wildwood Lodge, N14 W24121 Tower Place, Pewaukee.
Alternatively, the public can provide input by sending comments to Taylor Finger, DNR migratory bird ecologist, by email to taylor.finger@wisconsin.gov, by phone at (608) 266-8841 or by mail to Taylor Finger, Wisconsin DNR, PO Box 7921, Madison, WI 53707.