Evening star., 1955-01-10
Court 10 Hear
Duck-Hunf|ing
Case Tonight
Violations Laid to
Two Top Maryland
Conservation Men

Two top Maryland conserva-
ticn ofiicials face trial tonight
on charges Of violating State
regulations on duck shooting.
They were caught In q Fed
.eral breakdown on Illegal shoot
ing In the Chesapeake Bay area
Ia drive which netted more
than 100 Maryland hunters In
10 days.
Arthur II. Brice. chairman Of
Maryland's Board of Natural
Resources and head Of the De-
.partment of Tidewarter Fish
cries, and Amos s. Creighton.
commander Of the fisheries pa
troll feet. have been ordered
to appear before Magistrate w.
Vernon Kirby In Chestertown
ut 8 o'clock tonight.
They are charged, together
with two companions, with ex-
ceeding' the daily bag limit on
ducks and Of batting within IS
yards Of decoys, according to
Curtis Allen. supervisor Of the
Fish and Wildlife Services Re-
gion Five.
Laws CurtaiI Batting.
Federal law prohibits shooting
over q baited area. Maryland
law forbids batting within 200
yards Of q duck blind.
2 Mr. Allen identified the other
two members Of the party as
Arthur Groves. a farm tenant of
Mr.. Brtce's, and Howard Toul-
son, q Betterton md farmer.
The arrests recalled q similar
incident five years ago. when
Federal game wardens arrested
A. Gordon Fleet, chairman Of the
MARYLAND Game and Inland Fish
Commission, and Lester N.
rowner. member Of the Board
OF Naturai Resources. on charges
Of shooting mourning doves over
o baited area.
= Both pleaded guilty and paid
i1nes In Federal Court.
The Brice party was caught
December 80 in a raid on a blind
ON Lloyd's Greek Bar at the
mouth OF the Sassafras River
In Kent County, according to
Federal Game Warden Ralph s.
Harris Of Cambridge. Md.
Observed From Air.
The raid followed an observa-
tion Of the blind area by Federal
men flying a Fish and Wildlife
Service plane, Mr.. Allen said
residents Of the neighborhood
had written numerous letters
saying the blind was so heavily
baited with wheat and corn that
ducks were bypassing all other
blinds In the area. -
Federal Game wardens Daniel
Russ and Harry Greenewald,
the arresting officers. said the
Brice party had 23 ducks In its
possession. The legal daily limit
is four per person.
Information was turned over
to Maryland game wardens and
yesterday summons were issued
in the name of the Maryland
Department Of Fish and Game,
an agency under the jurisdiction
Of the resources board which Mr.
Brice heads.
No explanation was offered as
to the delay in serving the
summonses, although George
Rasin. States attorney for Kent
County, said summonses FREE
quently are not issued in such
cases until the day Of a sched-
uled hearing.
viOlators Given Option.
To date, the Federal enforce
ment officers, who have been
deputized as Maryland game
wardens, have given alleged vio-
lators an option of standing trial
on either Federal or State
charges.
In illegal batting cases viola.
tors have been permitted to for.
felt collateral of $26.75.
Under Federal law penalties
range up to $500 fines and six
months prison sentences fol-
hunting violations.
Ernest A. Vaughn. director o.
the Maryland Game and Inlane
Fish Commission. denied toda,
there was any connection be,
tween the arrest of the Bricl
party and the recent confiic
between State and Fedora
agents over enforcement O
duck-shooting regulations.
Team-up Halted.
When the Federal crackdowl
began two weeks ago, Mr.
Vaughn stopped the traditiona
teaming-up Of State and Fed
eral agents In scouting for VIC
lators.
He said the Federal agent
were ordering the closing o
blinds, In violation Of Maryland
regulations. However. he con
ceded that the blinds stayet
closed"
Mr.. Allen charged that politi
cal pressure prompted Mr.
Vaughn's order to his men b
work independently.
Violation Of the batting regu
lations was described by M
Allen as worse In Maryland thar
In any state from Maryland Il
Maine.