Concern about deer-hunting ballot wording

Cape Girardeau will make a final decision on the long-debated urban deer-hunting ordinance in an April 2 election, and city and county officials hope voters will know what they're actually voting for.

The April ballot question asks voters if the ordinance should be repealed, meaning a "yes" vote overturns the ordinance and prevents the implementation of urban hunting, and a "no" vote allows the ordinance to take effect.

That wording for the first-ever ordinance referendum in the city's history has the potential to trip up voters, so government officials want people to have that knowledge stepping into the voting booth.

Councilwoman Loretta Schneider, who opposed the ordinance in a July vote, said she has asked the Missouri Department of Conservation for other feasible alternatives to control the deer population because she expects voters will choose to repeal the ordinance. Her only concern is that voters may not know to vote "yes" if they are against urban deer hunting.

"The question is to repeal the ordinance that's already in place and has just been suspended," Schneider said. "So to repeal it you have to vote 'yes' and to keep it you have to vote 'no.'"

Last July, the Cape Girardeau City Council passed the ordinance that allowed bow hunting within city limits in accordance with the Missouri Department of Conservation's seasonal hunting laws. The ordinance passed 4-3, with John Voss, Mark Lanzotti, Meg Davis Proffer and Trent Summers in favor, and Schneider, Kathy Swan and Mayor Harry Rediger opposed.

By September, the ordinance was suspended after Keep Cape Safe, a group opposed to urban deer hunting, gathered nearly 4,000 signatures on a referendum petition, more than enough to put the issue to public vote. The referendum will be the first in the city's history.

Cape Girardeau County Clerk Kara Clark Summers said the ballot language for the urban deer hunting question possibly could cause some confusion among voters unfamiliar with the ordinance.

"Many ballot questions are phrased in a way that leave the possibility for misinterpretation," Clark Summers said. "It's really important that voters educate themselves on issues before they go to the polls."

Clark Summers said copies of the ordinance will be available at all polling locations in the city, and election judges have been instructed not to help voters with any questions, to avoid any misunderstandings.

Rediger also encouraged voters to gather the facts and show up to the polls April 2.

"It's in the citizens' hands now," Rediger said. "They have to decide, do they want the deer population to continue to grow or pass an ordinance that will minimize these numbers?"

Stephen Stigers, leader of Keep Cape Safe, maintained that the citizens of Cape Girardeau will vote down what he calls a "bad ordinance." He said allowing bow hunting in the city would be "inhumane."

"There's no honor in shooting semi-tame deer in an urban setting," Stigers said. "Most of them would just stand there and look at you."

Fellow member Gene Pulley cited safety as his primary concern. Not every bow hunter will hit a deer, he said, meaning the arrow could potentially hit an unintended target.

"They [arrows] can travel as far as 75 yards," Pulley said. "I don't think many hunters are going to be aware of what's going on that far away from them."

Voss said he also was worried about the safety of Cape Girardeau citizens, which is why he has been a strong proponent of urban deer hunting since the council first considered it in 2008.

Voss said the intent of the ordinance is to minimize car collisions with deer and property damage caused by deer.

He also said that allowing bow hunting within city limits was the most cost-effective and efficient way to manage the deer population, which has been the cause of property damage throughout the city. There are laws against human trespassing, Voss said, and the city needs to do the same for deer.

"We're not reinventing the wheel here," Voss said. "Urban deer hunting has worked well elsewhere in Missouri and it's a safe, proven method to drive down the population."

Schneider said she remains opposed to the idea of urban deer hunting. She said she agreed that the deer population was a problem, but did not believe bow hunting was the answer.

"I've heard supporters say there haven't been any accidents in other areas that allow urban deer hunting, but that's not enough," she said. "If the fear is still there, if people aren't satisfied, then it's a problem."

srinehart@semissourian.com

388-3641

Pertinent address:

Cape Girardeau, Mo.