Committee approves bill allowing lethal force against bears in private defense situations

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – A House committee passed a bill that would allow people to use lethal force to kill a bear without a permit or authorization if that individual feels threatened on private property.

HB 87, sponsored by Rep. Jason Shoaf, R-Port St. Joe, would allow for the the removal of bears without the need for a permit or authorization if an individual feels threatened and deems the use of lethal force necessary for self-protection if the bear is on their private property.

It also grants an exemption from receiving penalties. The bill passed by a vote of 12-4.

“Since the black bears have been protected, the population has exploded, and attempts to manage it have not been successful,” Shoaf said. “We are told to blow whistles, we are told to spray mace, we are told to run, that is not what we need to be doing. We need to be able to protect ourselves and our property.”

The bill passed through the House Agriculture, Conservation & Resiliency Subcommittee favorably Tuesday. Debate sparked from representatives as well as members of the public who stood in opposition of the bill.

Shoaf clarified that the bill specifies that an individual can only use lethal force in a self-defense act against a bear if the bear is on the individual’s private property and they feel threatened.

“This is not a bill to allow hunting,” Shoaf said. “This is not a bill to allow trophy gathering. In fact, the bill specifically forbids you to use this statute out on a hunting lease or in the woods. It is for your home, it’s for your private property.”

The bill also mandates that individuals promptly inform the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission within 24 hours of the bear’s taking.

Possession, sale, or disposal of the captured bear or its parts would be prohibited, with the responsibility of disposal resting on the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, according to the bill.

“It clearly states that you’re not allowed to keep any part of the bear as a trophy, you’re not allowed to keep the meat,” Shoaf said. “If you’re going to have to use deadly force, it’s nothing to put on a wall or mount or deal with in the way that we would hunt or fish. This is purely about protecting yourself, your family and your property.”

Shoaf pointed to local law enforcement reports that reveal over 6,000 calls for bear related issues in Florida last year. Notably, he said, Franklin County, which is made up of about 80% state or national forest land with a population of 12,000 people, accounted for 1,000 of those calls.

“We have a major problem, folks,” Shoaf said. “We are loaded up. We can’t make any more bears in North Florida. So when it becomes a risk to life and safety and property, it’s time to do something.”

Chief Deputy Dusty Arnold spoke on behalf of the Liberty County Sheriff’s Office in support of the bill and said the sheriff’s office is starting to see “a lot more bears get hit by cars” and “property damage everywhere.”

Florida State Director at the Humane Society of the U.S. Kate MacFall spoke in opposition of the bill and said there “isn’t a bear problem, but there is a human trash problem.”

“Shooting bears does not minimize conflicts, trash management does,” MacFall said.

Rep. Robin Bartleman, D-Weston, opposed the bill and said she is “hoping” Shoaf can “work on this bill.”

Bartleman said the law already exists that if someone is “about to get killed by a bear, you are allowed to shoot that bear,” but there is an investigation required.

“So what this is doing is making it just a little bit easier where people don’t have to worry about that investigation and that’s a big part of my concern,” Bartleman said.

Rep. Hillary Cassel, D-Dania Beach, voted in support of the bill, but said she hopes to work with Shoaf on the language of the legislation, “getting it to a better position.”

“I just wanted to put on the record that that does not mean I will be a yes in the future or yes on the floor. I think the bill needs some work,” Cassel said.

Rep. Bruce Antone, D-Orlando, said he has “some reluctance” about supporting the legislation, but chose to support it Tuesday.

He said he expressed concerns to Shoaf about people chasing after bears if the bear runs off of an individual’s property and still being able to use lethal force against them, but Shoaf told him the bill does not allow that.

Antone said there are people in particular areas in North Florida that the bill addresses who believe that they “need to be able to protect themselves without criminal prosecution.”

“I just believe that folks should be able to protect themselves if they really feel like a bear is out to harm them or will harm them,” Antone said.