9/25/2003 Defiance Crescent-News "...Gregory Franks, 49, of Clinton...avoided court by pleading guilty to a charge of attempting to take a non-game bird...Franks shot the bird on July 26 in Franklin Township, south of AKRON, near a site whre he raises racing pigeons...A landowner found the falcon, which was injured by shotgun pellets. It is being rehabilitated at the Medina Raptor Center and will likely return to the wild...Peregrine falcons have found new life in Ohio nesting on skyscrapers and bridges in the state's major cities. They are no longer on the federal endangered species list, but are still considered endangered in Ohio, which has 16 nesting pairs."

The 11/11/2001 Toledo Ohio Blade reports that Bradley Dysinger owner of Thorn Bottom Hunting Preserve (and driving by his land it looks like he raises his own pheasants to shoot) outside of Grover Hill near Paulding Ohio shot two hawks, and was ordered to pay a $1000 fine. Under the federal law, killing a hawk or owl is a Class B misdemeanor, punishable on conviction by a fine of up to $15,000, and 6 months in jail. But a state law mentioned during the court case is at odds with the federal law. Section 1533.78 of the Ohio Revised Code, eneacted in 1957, among other things allows licensed gamebird propagators to kill "predatory birds" in the act of killing propagated gamebirds. "State law can be MORE restrictive, not less restrictive, " said Dan LeClair, US Fish & Wildlife Service agent. The Ohio Division of Wildlife can't clear this (or ORC 1533.07 "...causing damage to domestic animals or fowl") up without an act of the state legislature. The plan is to eliminate Section 1533.78 and amend 1533.07, closing the old loopholes in Ohio state law.

INJURED GOLDEN EAGLE WILL NEVER FLY AGAIN Columbus Ohio Dispatch Saturday, December 22, 2001 NEWS 03B By Frank Hinchey Dispatch Staff Reporter

YELLOW SPRINGS, Ohio -- The sharp-eyed predator walked unsteadily about its cage yesterday for good reason -- the golden eagle was missing its 3-foot-long left wing.The maimed bird arrived at the Raptor Center in the Glen Helen Nature Preserve on Monday after veterinarians last week in Columbus amputated the eagle's wing, shattered by a shotgun blast in Morrow County. Judging from a freshly munched rodent in its cage, the 1-year-old eagle appeared to have found its appetite and gained back some weight since it was found Dec. 8, according to Betty Ross, curator at the raptor center in Greene County. Federal and state wildlife officers have launched an investigation into the shooting of the protected eagle close to a field along Township Road 119 near Pulaskiville. "It's kind of like a murder investigation with half the evidence,'' said Paul Beiriger, special agent for the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. Golden eagles are not common in Ohio, said Beiriger, who once investigated a similar case a few years ago in Kansas. A midwinter survey conducted by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources in January recorded no golden eagle sightings in Ohio. The eagles, most common in Western states, are protected by the federal Migratory Bird Treaty and the Eagle Act as well as Ohio wildlife regulations, Beirigersaid. The Ohio Division of Wildlife is assisting in the probe. The federal agency is offering a reward of as much as $2,500 for information leading to an arrest. First offense for shooting raptors such as a golden eagle can result in a $100,000 fine. A second offense is a felony and is punishable by jail and a $250,000 fine. Jim Quinlivan, a state wildlife law-enforcement supervisor, said investigators have leads "and we feel confident we will get to the bottom of it.'' "It was probably shot close to where it was found, and somebody in the surrounding area knows something about it,'' Beiriger said. Whatever the outcome, the eagle's days of soaring are over, Ross said yesterday as she inspected the bird's bandaged stump. "It's sad,'' she said. "Here's this big beautiful bird that will never be released. But we will try to provide it a quality of life here.''' Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to call Jim Quinlivan at 614-644-3925 or Paul Beiriger at 740-368-0137. fhinchey@dispatch.com