Lancaster County District Attorney Craig
Stedman said Tuesday he doesn't ever
want to see another "grossly misguided"
confiscation of a pet bird here.
So he's altered county court rules so
that the Pennsylvania Game Commission
can't obtain search warrants without
approval of the DA's office.
"I cannot undo what was done here,
but I can, and have, made sure that
something like this will not take place
in Lancaster County again," Stedman said
Tuesday.
The bird seizure happened in May
after an Intelligencer Journal/Lancaster
New Era story about Elizabethtown woman
Pati Mattrick, who had saved the life of
a baby house finch that had fallen from
a nest and then kept the bird as a
beloved pet for four years.
Taking wildlife out of the wild for
use as a pet is against state and
federal laws.
Two days after the story ran, the
Game Commission obtained a search
warrant from District Judge Jayne Duncan
of Elizabethtown and went to Mattrick's
home.
The incident outraged many people,
including Lancaster County's district
attorney, who said he would not have
issued a search warrant.
"What took place here was not right
nor was it done for the right reasons,"
Stedman said. "The finch posed no threat
or danger to the community. Mrs.
Mattrick had saved it from certain
death, had no criminal intent whatsoever
and she was not attempting to scoff the
PGC or the law.
"At best," Stedman said, "this case
was a grossly misguided abuse of law
enforcement discretion. At worst, it was
just plain cruel. I most certainly would
not have approved this warrant."
Stedman has no direct supervisory
powers over the Game Commission. But he
recently initiated an administrative
order to change criminal procedure rules
in the county to prevent district judges
or county court judges from giving
warrants to the Game Commission without
his office's approval.
President Judge Joseph Madenspacher
signed the order, which was published,
as required, in the Pennsylvania
Bulletin on July 17. It takes effect 30
days after publication.
Stedman said Richard Palmer, the Game
Commission's director of the Bureau of
Wildlife Protection, informed him that
the agency would comply with the new
order.
The Game Commission did not reply to
requests from the Intelligencer
Journal/Lancaster New Era for comment on
the new restrictions.
Stedman said he was unaware of any
other county putting such restrictions
on the Game Commission. "But they may
want to," he said.
He said the new rule now puts in
place a mandatory check on the powers of
the Game Commission in Lancaster County.
Further, he said the agency will have
to consult with the district attorney's
office because "we can provide legal
advice when they have a warrant for a
legitimate case."
A Game Commission wildlife
conservation officer, accompanied by
three Elizabethtown police, caught the
bird and took it to a wildlife
rehabilitator, where it apparently
remains.
A distraught Mattrick was not cited
for any law violation, but was issued a
warning.
Asked to list the reasons why he
created the new restrictions, the
district attorney said that although the
Game Commission is not funded by tax
dollars, the Elizabethtown Borough
police officers were "and this was
certainly a waste of taxpayer money."
"Further," Stedman said, "I do not
even want to contemplate how outrageous
it would have been had a major crime
taken place during the time the officers
were occupied with looking for a
harmless finch.
"To this day, I still have difficulty
believing that all this actually took
place. Incidents like this are an
embarrassment to all of those in law
enforcement and must never be repeated."
A copy of the search warrant
affidavit obtained by Stedman showed
that it included authorization to search
not only the house for the bird but
also, if necessary, the body of Mattrick.
Commenting on the incident, Stedman
said, "There is room for discretion in
law enforcement. In fact, we would not
be doing our job if we treated each case
exactly the same regardless of the
unique circumstances.
"Instead, each case must be treated
based on the specific facts, relevant
law, as well as the goals of the
prosecution. Ultimately, the best
guiding principle for law enforcement is
to do the right thing for the right
reason.
"Even after the finch was taken,
there were numerous, much more
reasonable potential solutions which
would have served everyone's interests.
I, along with others, have suggested and
discussed those with the Pennsylvania
Game Commission.
"Unfortunately, the PGC has declined
to deviate from the path they have
chosen."
acrable@lnpnewsd.com
