WI DNR statement and Op-Ed: Tribes do not have authority to hunt deer at night in Ceded Territory

DNR Secretary Cathy Stepp’s statement on confirmation GLIFWC has issued order allowing night hunting of deer in Ceded Territory

“We have been informed the Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission plans to allow Chippewa Tribal night hunting for deer in the Ceded Territory (roughly the northern third of the state) starting Nov. 26. DNR does not approve of this action and the state will file suit today (Wednesday) seeking a federal court order requiring the Tribes to comply with the court’s prohibition on deer shining and confirming the State’s right to enforce the state shining law against Tribal hunters in the Ceded Territory.
“We have concerns about the short amount of time to notify the public, the circumvention of court oversight and past rulings on night hunting for deer, and public safety.
“We have also requested that the Tribes refrain from shining deer until this matter can be settled in court. Should Tribal members refuse, it is important for the public to know that night hunting of deer could take place on public lands in the Ceded Territory starting Nov. 26, and proper precautions should be taken if outdoor recreating.”
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Op-Ed: State opposed to Tribal shining

by Cathy Stepp, Secretary, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
You may have heard about potential shining – or night hunting of deer – by Tribal members in the Ceded Territory (roughly the northern third of Wisconsin). I want to give you an overview from the State’s perspective.
DNR does not approve of this action and does not believe it is within the authority of the Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission. Working in conjunction with the Wisconsin Department of Justice, the State filed suit Wednesday seeking a federal court order requiring the Tribes to comply with the court’s prohibition on deer shining and confirming the State’s right to enforce the State shining law against Tribal hunters in the Ceded Territory, roughly the northern third of the state.
Why?
We have concerns about the short amount of time to notify the public, the circumvention of court oversight and past rulings on night hunting for deer, and public safety.
We understand that the Tribes contend they should be allowed to hunt deer at night because a recently adopted state law permits the night hunting of wolves. We believe that this is essentially the same argument the Tribes unsuccessfully asserted in federal court in the 1989 “deer trial” when they argued that State’s provision for night hunting coyotes should allow them to hunt deer at night. After a week-long trial, the court concluded that deer shining was much more dangerous to public safety than the nighttime hunting of predators like coyotes, and so Judge Barbara Crabb rejected the tribes’ challenge to the State’s deer shining law. We believe that the State’s legalization of night hunting of wolves, another predator species, changes nothing in this respect.
Importantly, even if it were legal for the Tribes to hunt deer at night – which we believe it is not – we believe GLIFWC acted with too little notice and too little consultation with the State. We have not been able to discuss many safety aspects. And we need time to be sure that people using public lands with no expectation of night deer hunting are aware of any such changes. The GLIFWC order would have night hunting of deer start Nov. 26.
DNR has diligently and in good faith implemented numerous enhanced Tribal resource harvesting opportunities, including updating and increasing harvest limits for Tribal harvest of a host of species; honoring self-regulation for gathering forest products on State lands; agreeing to alternative monitoring of walleye harvest to save creel clerk expenses; youth hunt mentoring; improving mapping of the Ceded Territory in Wisconsin; and responsive and flexible state park hunting opportunities mechanism – all of which have operated almost exclusively for the Tribes’ benefit. I’m proud of that record, and I believe our actions of the past give us strong credibility is addressing this issue.
I contacted GLFWC Executive Administrator Jim Zorn and the Tribal Chairs and respectfully asked the Tribes to refrain from implementing night deer hunting. And I asked that Tribal members not go out shining until the federal court rules on our motion.
I assured Administrator Zorn of our continuing commitment to the court-approved process for negotiating changes to our past agreements on regulatory matters. I let him know we are hopeful this does not put the Tribes and state with odds with each other.
But I also informed him that it is DNR’s job to honor court decisions and directives, and to enforce the laws that are in place at this time, and we will do so. In the meantime, I ask that all of us – Tribal members, governmental agencies, and the public – work together to manage court-affirmed hunting and gathering rights in a safe and legal manner.