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State residents have a constitutional right to hunt on private lands on
Sunday, according to a lawsuit file by the American Civil
Liberties Union of West Virginia.
The suit, which is currently facing some legal technicalities, was brought in Ritchie County on behalf of a local hunting
club.
It seeks to overturn a ban on Sunday hunting that Ritchie
County voters approved last year, and could affect similar bans passed in most West Virginia counties.
Jason Huber, lawyer for the ACLU, says the state constitution ensures the right to hunt on private lands any day of the
week.
The lawsuit will start in Ritchie Circuit Court on behalf of the
Hartley Hill Hunt Club, a private group with about 50 members that
leases 2,000 acres for private hunting.
The suit will likely wind up before the state Supreme Court.
Residents in 41 of West Virginia's 55 counties have voted to ban Sunday
hunting in their counties.
The other 14 counties have not
put the issue before their residents for a vote.
The lawsuit says that individuals cannot be deprived of the use of their
property for one day every week, under Article III, Section 22, of the
state constitution. That section provides for the right to bear arms for
"lawful hunting and recreational use."
"There is no rational justification for outlawing
hunting on Sunday, as opposed to any other day of the week," Huber said.
The West Virginia Farm Bureau, which represents farmers and landowners, is against Sunday hunting.
They contend the state has weak trespassing laws, meaning that hunters
cross onto property without permission
The Bureau said Sunday is the one day farm families don't want to have to police
their own property. West Virginia's "rural and religious values" have been expressed through
overwhelming votes in opposition to Sunday hunting, they said. .
The suit asks for another referendum in Ritchie County, if the judge
doesn't choose to reinstate Sunday hunting. If successful, the lawsuit
could force counties across the state to hold new votes.
County Commissions accused the West Virginia legislature for not passing a clear law.
Hunters and the ACLU may appear to be strange bedfellows, but they both
have a deep respect for the constitution, said Andrew Schneider, the
state group's executive director.
"People who think the ACLU is a liberal organization have a misguided
view of what we do. We defend people's rights and liberties as defined
by the constitution," he said.
"Sometimes, the rights of the left are
being violated, sometimes the rights of the right are. We don't pick and
choose."
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