University professors Joyce Carol Oates and Peter Singer have joined nearly 30 other plaintiffs in bringing a lawsuit against Princeton Township, demanding the halt of plans to kill over 1,300 deer.
The plaintiffs make up a diverse group of Princeton residents, ranging from animal rights activists and elementary school students to avid hunters. They are teaming up with the Mercer County Deer Alliance, a statewide animal rights organization and attorneys Carl Mayer '81 and Bruce Afran.
Mayer said he had multiple reasons for taking on the case, one of the most important being the safety of the community.
"The safety of the people in Princeton is at danger because the bullets from [the hired hunters'] rifles can travel up to a mile," Mayer said. "Due to how densely populated [the Princeton area] is, no one in the [area] is safe from richochet."
Princeton Township has hired a company called White Buffalo to do the controlled killings.
"The hunters are allowed to work 24 hours a day with no notice to the public," he said. "With [University] students running through [the] Institute Woods, there is no guarantee of safety."
There are approximately 1,600 deer in Princeton Township. The goal of the Township is to kill 500 deer this winter and to eventually cut the population down to 300 within a few years.
In addition to using high-powered rifles to kill deer, the Township is also planning to use a "net and bolt" method. According to Mayer, this method involves capturing deer in a giant net and using a bolt gun to fire a four inch metal bolt into the captured deer's skull.
Singer, a renowned ethicist, was asked by the group of plaintiffs for his support. He agreed, citing the method as being especially cruel.
"The [net and bolt] method that the Township is using is horrendous," Singer said. "I would always prefer non-lethal methods."
Mayer said that deer captured in the net often struggle so violently as to break their legs and antlers. The net and bolt method is not allowed anywhere else in the state to kill animals, except in slaughter houses, where the animal is secured, according to Mayer. But when captured and struggling in the net, Mayer said, deer are not secure, and the bolt gun often does not hit its target — which he said makes him wonder why non-lethal methods are not being pursued.
"There are dozens of non-lethal methods to control deer population, such as putting reflectors on road sides to keep deer away and minimize car accidents," Mayer said. "There are also sterilization and contraception methods."
Princeton Township has made it illegal to feed deer, criminalizing any private feeder that is less than four feet off the ground and also maintained its ban on private hunting. Mayer called these examples of "irrational public policy."
The University has yet to take a stance on the issue, which Mayer said is the biggest question the community should be asking of the University.
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