Wildlife Groups Want Body Cams on B.C. Conservation Officers

[ItsGrouseTalk]

Wildlife Groups want body cams on B.C. Conservation Officers after 4,300 bears have been killed in 8 years.

Link to 100 Mile Free Press: https://www.100milefreepress.net/news/wildlife-group-wants-body-cams-on-b-c-conservation-officers-after-4300-bears-killed-in-8-years/

The wildlife group is Pacific Wild, which I believe are the group responsible for the grizzly bear hunt ban (If I recall correctly), and protested wolf culls and the hunting of cougar, lynx, and bobcat.

Here's the link to their article: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/conservation-officers-should-wear-body-cameras-says-group-upset-by-number-of-bears-killed-in-b-c-1.5413611?fbclid=IwAR2A4La2gJUKkCSHkY5Xn0px3qXEqbC k0Kgk5RwHdl9K7NBiPHEQCOBg62o

And I ran some quick numbers: There are roughly 120,000 to 160,000 black bears in BC. On the low end, 542 bears killed is roughly 0.004% of the total black bear population of BC.

[butcher]

I believe everyone’s favorite former CO, Mr Bryce Casavant is heavily involved in this.

[IronNoggin]

I believe everyone’s favorite former CO, Mr Bryce Casavant is heavily involved in this.

Correct. He still desperately desires his limelight...

Nog

[limit time]

Why ? So they can use the footage as a weapon to further ban black bear hunting.

[338win mag]

Are these wildlife groups going to pay for the Camera's, maintenance etc?
Didn't think so, then they need to be told to stfu and get back in line.

[rageous]

Bottom line...CO’s are trained professionals. Most cases removing problem bears is done for safety reasons. They don’t need body cams for day to day work. The people calling for them are uneducated bleeding hearts...end of story.

[guest]

So glad Casavant isnt a CO any more.

He was crappy at his job. Didnt belong. Hence......hes gone.

[Piperdown]

Are Casavant and Ben Isitt related,they have to be can't be 2 people that stupid who aren't related.

[Islandeer]

The left is so deranged.

[Steve W]

I think its a good idea. Besides showing the decision making process and related factors prior to shooting a bear or cougar, it would show the countless hours spent trying to get people to manage their attractants and take responsibility for bringing wildlife into their yards and neighbourhood.

[HappyJack]

They should stop keeping records, it should be a 'need to know' policy. Nobody really needs to know how many are being destroyed, all it does is provide ammo for the bun heads.

[tigrr]

Doing that would give their lawyers more ammo to use against nuisance animal destruction. Making every CO question if he or she should shoot the problem animal. Then on the other hand the SPCA destroys more cats and dogs in a month than CO's do animals in a year.

[Seth]

Are Casavant and Ben Isitt related,they have to be can't be 2 people that stupid who aren't related.

Lol. So true.

[Ron.C]

They should stop keeping records, it should be a 'need to know' policy. Nobody really needs to know how many are being destroyed, all it does is provide ammo for the bun heads.

Have to disagree with you on this one. What people need to know how many are destroyed and why. The vast majority are habituated problem animals or aggressive animals known to be a public safety concern. Call it what it is, punish those that habituate these animals. They are the ones that are killing them. The CO's are just the ones expected to resolve the problem that in many cases was caused by someone else.

[Squamch]

Every dealing I've had with a CO has been a good experience. That said, they are law enforcement officers, and should wear body cams.

[MontyLake]

The left is so deranged.

Give it a break. Radical animal rights organizations have nothing to do with left ideology. Marx was silent on conservation issues.

[bcsteve]

Every dealing I've had with a CO has been a good experience. That said, they are law enforcement officers, and should wear body cams.
Not many police services are wearing body cams in Canada.

[45freezer]

I think its a good idea. Besides showing the decision making process and related factors prior to shooting a bear or cougar, it would show the countless hours spent trying to get people to manage their attractants and take responsibility for bringing wildlife into their yards and neighbourhood.

Yup, I'm sure they'll include those countless hours in their propaganda clips. Trust me, their only interest in these cameras is passing off problem bears that were posing a threat to local children as a poor innocent cub with a mother and father that cried when the big bad CO murdered it in cold blood...unfortunately John Q Public eats that stuff up.

[Squamch]

Not many police services are wearing body cams in Canada.

That is also a problem. Every cop should be held accountable for actions in uniform. The COs are a much smaller sample group, and one that tend to go into it for the right reasons, but any animal that is more equal than other animals needs to be watched carefully.