Safari Club Goes To U.S. Supreme CourtSafari Club International has taken its litigation efforts to the nation's highest court with the filing of an amicus brief before the U.S. Supreme Court in the case U.S. v. Stevens. SCI’s brief defends the production and distribution of hunting TV programs and videos – activities of great importance to SCI members and hunters generally. The case involves a federal law that makes it a criminal offense to produce, sell, or possess a depiction of “animal cruelty.” But the devil is in the details. The statute's definition of "animal cruelty" could foreseeably include TV or videos that depict lawful hunting. For example, if an outdoor television program filmed a black bear hunt in Pennsylvania where bear hunting is legal, but distributed it in New Jersey where bear hunting is not currently legal, then those involved could be in violation of the law. In this example, mere possession of a bear hunting video in New Jersey with the intent to distribute could also be criminalized. In its brief, SCI argued to the Court that the law as written is unconstitutional under the First Amendment because it criminalizes legitimate speech. The Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation joined SCI on the amicus curiae brief, filed on July 27. Many anti-hunting groups, including the Humane Society, lined up on the other side. The Supreme Court will hear the case on October 6, 2009, the first day of its new term.
View the brief:
http://www.scifirstforhunters.org/docs/content/1733/Amici%20Brief%20-%20SCI%20-%20Supreme%20Court%20Depiction%20-%2007%2022%2009%20(final).pdf
