No charges brought against Dr. Palmer in the Zim Lion debacle.....

http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/10/12/us-zimbabwe-wildlife-dentist-idUSKCN0S61G320151012

This may be reported elsewhere, and if so, I'm sorry.

Interesting to note that he is not banned from traveling to Zimbabwe as a "tourist" but will not be allowed to hunt there as no permits will be issued. Sounds like Mrs. Muchinguri-Kashiri is a little upset that she couldn't get the charges to stick…..

Zimbabwe will not charge U.S. dentist for killing Cecil the lion

Zimbabwe will not charge American dentist Walter Palmer for killing its most prized lion in July because he had obtained legal authority to conduct the hunt, a cabinet minister said on Monday, angering conservationists.

Palmer, a lifelong big-game hunter from Minnesota, stoked a global controversy when he killed Cecil, a rare black-maned lion, with a bow and arrow outside Hwange National Park in Western Zimbabwe.

But Palmer's hunting papers were in order, Environment Minister Oppah Muchinguri-Kashiri said on Monday. Consequently, he could not be charged.

"We approached the police and then the Prosecutor General, and it turned out that Palmer came to Zimbabwe because all the papers were in order," Muchinguri-Kashiri told reporters.

Muchinguri-Kashiri said Palmer was free to visit Zimbabwe as a tourist but not as a hunter. The implication was he would not be issued the permits a hunter needs.

The environment minister's comments immediately drew the ire of the animal conservation group Zimbabwe Conservation Task Force, which maintained that Palmer had committed a crime and said it planned to pursue legal action against him in the U.S.

Palmer could not be reached immediately for comment on the environment minister's statement to reporters.

"The fact is the law was broken. We are going to get our advocates in America to actually see what they can do to bring justice to him," said Johnny Rodrigues, the head of the task force, which first reported news of Cecil's killing.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has previously said it was investigating the killing of the lion.

Two more people still face charges related to Cecil's killing. Both allegedly were involved in using bait to lure Cecil out of his habitat in Hwange National Park so he could be killed.

Theo Bronkhorst, a professional hunter in Zimbabwe, is charged with breaching hunting rules in connection with the hunt in which Cecil was killed. A game park owner is also charged with allowing an illegal hunt. Both have denied the charges.

Bronkhorst is expected to appear in a Hwange court on Thursday where a magistrate will rule on a request by his lawyers that his indictment be quashed.

Parks officials said prosecutors would bring Cecil's head, which the hunters took as a trophy, to court as an exhibit if the trial goes ahead.

Palmer, 55, has previously said that the hunt was legal and no one in the hunting party realized the targeted lion was Cecil, a well-known tourist attraction in the park.

Wildlife hunting, which earned $45 million last year, is an important source of money for the southern African nation, still recovering from a catastrophic recession between 1999-2008.


(Reporting by MacDonald Dzirutwe, additional reporting by David Bailey in Minneapolis; Editing by James Macharia)

WOW! I'm surprised that he didn't show his documents and permits during the time Americans were killing his business!

I wonder how many of the millions of people that were harassing and threatening the man will step up and apologize. I notice none of the media outlets that straight out said he was solely and directly responsible for poaching the lion have issued any retractions. I wonder if SCI that abandoned him without even looking at the case will say anything?

I think if I was in his shoes my lawyer and me would be filing some suits. I would push back as hard as I could.

CAustin said:

WOW! I'm surprised that he didn't show his documents and permits during the time Americans were killing his business!

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With the piranha-like feeding frenzy that was taking place to destroy his life I seriously doubt it would have made any difference whatsoever.

I wonder if the SCI will reinstate his membership? What concerns me is that guy did nothing wrong and look at how he become the most hated man in the world. Even people on our side wasted no time throwing him under the bus. This could happen to any of this with the way things are today.

Poor Johnny Rodrigues, didn't get his witch.

Morons! In the US and Zim!
Hoe the hell can you lay formal charges against a client!
There seems to be no end to the stupidity!
The fact that SCI expelled him as a member places serious doubts over they're ability to make rational decisions as well...

innocent until proven guilty???i think not.

I don't know if I would like him even if I met him, but it sure seems Americans surely showed their asses and have nothing to show for it. So many that were interviewed on TV making comments either about Palmer or the lion showed just how stupid or ignorant they were. Everyone involved should apologize to him, but we know that's not going to happen. Meeting with lawyers should be the next logical step for him, and sue the sh....out of them if possible!!!

Nobody is going to apologize to Mr. Palmer in the eyes of the antis he is still a bloodthirsty murderer, wether he had his permits or not .

In the eyes of the antis we all are. No laws will ever outweigh their moral ruling.

Up until now, all I have read and seen on this is allegations and innuendo. I posted earlier it needed to be investigated. Those investigations have finally started producing results. ( I wonder if any money exchanged hands ?)

Some classic allegations I've seen on here:

'Osama Bin Laden lived in a luxury villa in Pakistan' ( That's was pure western extrapolation)
'Ebola will sweep the world' (pure ignorance of anything medical)

Treat Social media (and to a lesser extent forums) as primarily a source of entertainment and self expression. The degree of truth and fact varies incredibly.

PHOENIX PHIL said:

Poor Johnny Rodrigues, didn't get his witch.

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"The environment minister's comments immediately drew the ire of the animal conservation group Zimbabwe Conservation Task Force, which maintained that Palmer had committed a crime and said it planned to pursue legal action against him in the U.S.

"The fact is the law was broken. We are going to get our advocates in America to actually see what they can do to bring justice to him," said Johnny Rodrigues, the head of the task force, which first reported news of Cecil's killing."


The announcement doesn't stop Johnny from being a media whore.

Wheels said:

The announcement doesn't stop Johnny from being a media whore.

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So right you are. And the announcement will do little or nothing to prevent the piranha like anti's from stripping every bit of flesh from anyone involved . . . innocence be damned.

The damage has been done already.......we as hunters will be paying for this event for a LONG TIME.

enysse said:

The damage has been done already.......we as hunters will be paying for this event for a LONG TIME.

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Couldn't agree more.

Having said that, many hunters contributed to the damage (as did SCI) by judging this man guilty of a crime in Zimbabwe before all of the facts were in. In fact, many on this forum did the same. I could go through the threads and see who those people were, but will let it go. Sadly, you know who you are.

PHOENIX PHIL said:

Poor Johnny Rodrigues, didn't get his witch.

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I tried to tell him that Phil when this first started, until be banned me from his site.

Jaco Strauss said:

he fact that SCI expelled him as a member places serious doubts over they're ability to make rational decisions as well...

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Technically SCI only suspended the good dentist. I wonder if they will now announce his reinstatement? Regardless of these points, I agree with you. SCI seems as concerned with media and social opinion as some of the airlines.

enysse said:

The damage has been done already.......we as hunters will be paying for this event for a LONG TIME.

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I don't know that I agree with this and I don't think we know for sure yet. As of today what direct long term damage has been done? The airline trophy bans? Don't think so. I've heard lately that freight prices are lower than they've been in years. Largely due to oil prices, but still. Lion import bans? Nothing has changed yet that I'm aware of. That could change any day, or not. So other than the original lynch mob what bad has come of this for hunters?

Wheels said:

"The environment minister's comments immediately drew the ire of the animal conservation group Zimbabwe Conservation Task Force, which maintained that Palmer had committed a crime and said it planned to pursue legal action against him in the U.S.

"The fact is the law was broken. We are going to get our advocates in America to actually see what they can do to bring justice to him," said Johnny Rodrigues, the head of the task force, which first reported news of Cecil's killing."

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He would know, because the Government has stated the hunt was legal. So, Johnny knows it's illegal.

Please, oh please, try to bring a prosecution in the states.
At least Palmer can get some money out of an anti hunter when he sues them.

BRICKBURN said:

He would know, because the Government has stated the hunt was legal. So, Johnny knows it's illegal.

Please, oh please, try to bring a prosecution in the states.
At least Palmer can get some money out of an anti hunter when he sues them.

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Not that I'm going to side with Johnny crap for brains, but I don't think Zim has said the hunt was legal. They only said Dr. Palmer had the appropriate paperwork and as such they "could not" charge him. I think in fact they could have charged him, but that would be a very unwise move as that would for sure be killing off one more source of desperately needed cash. Too many foreign hunters would cross off Zim for a hunting destination.

As I recall there was no lion permit issued for the area hunted and if there was a permit in hand it was obtained through this quasi-legal wink-wink semi-official who-knows-who-gets-how-much-of-a-bribe quota transfer process.

In the end IF this is how it went, then I think the hunt should be deemed illegal as it defies the principals of scientific management of the wildlife. The landowner who I'm sure was part of it will walk with his crony connections and Bronkhorst will be the sole person left holding the big bag full of feces and will be made an example of.

I think if I were Dr. Palmer I'd avoid Zimbabwe for the rest of my life. I think if I were also him and had the resources he apparently has available to him, I'd have a lawyer send a letter to Johnny boy letting him know that if anymore public comments are made slandering him as a criminal, legal recourse against him and his crowd will be considered. Johnny is I think picking a fight with someone who can fight back.

Poor choice of words.

PHOENIX PHIL said:

Not that I'm going to side with Johnny crap for brains, but I don't think Zim has said the hunt was legal. They only said Dr. Palmer had the appropriate paperwork and as such they "could not" charge him. ...............

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"We approached the police and then the Prosecutor General, and it turned out that Palmer came to Zimbabwe because all the papers were in order," Muchinguri-Kashiri told reporters.

Jaco Strauss said:

Morons! In the US and Zim!
How the hell can you lay formal charges against a client! ..................

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Exactly. The Hunter relies on the PH's responsibility as set out under the law. So, I think Dr. Palmer will be quite safe.

PHOENIX PHIL said:

............ I think if I were also him and had the resources he apparently has available to him, I'd have a lawyer send a letter to Johnny boy letting him know that if anymore public comments are made slandering him as a criminal, legal recourse against him and his crowd will be considered. Johnny is I think picking a fight with someone who can fight back.

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Besides Johnny likely being totally full of hot air, let him start the suit and it will fund the next round of hunting for Palmer.


The lesson learned is: How do you pick an Outfitter?