Freiburg: Hobby hunter convicted of animal cruelty
Freiburg SVP Grand Councillor Roger Schuwey has been convicted again due to his hunting practices.
The Gruyère Police Court found it proven that Schuwey had, around a year ago during a recreational hunt, allowed a chamois to suffer for too long.
The Police Court sentenced the defendant to a suspended fine of 20 daily rates of 130 francs, with a probationary period of four years. In addition, a fine of 500 francs was imposed on him. The incident involving the chamois occurred approximately one year ago. The defendant had wounded the animal with two shots, and a third shot missed its target. The hobby hunter waited forty minutes before shooting at the animal a fourth time.
However, the fourth shot was also unsuccessful. The hobby hunter eventually pursued the animal on foot, grabbed it by the horns, and killed it with a handgun. The hobby hunter and Grand Councillor had only four cartridges with him that were suitable for chamois hunting. He had borrowed the weapon from an acquaintance but had not tested it before the hunt.
A game warden observed all of this from a distance of around 400 metres — and filmed some scenes with his mobile phone camera. The game warden then confronted Schuwey and told him: “This has nothing to do with hunting,” to which Schuwey replied: “Yes, that’s true.”
The court concluded that the chamois had been made to suffer for an unreasonably long time. The defendant had negligently delayed the animal’s death. The chamois had remained within the defendant’s field of vision at all times.
Schuwey had already been in trouble with the law in 2013, after he had shot at foxes from a window. He was sentenced to a suspended fine of 15 daily rates of 120 francs. The Gruyère police judge on Friday again limited the sentence to a suspended penalty in this case, but extended the probationary period by one year. The court assumes that the defendant has now been sufficiently warned and will not commit similar offences again.
Related dossiers and articles:
- Dossier: Hunting and Animal Welfare
- Dossier: Chamois in Switzerland
- Dossier: Hunting and Weapons
- Dossier: Hunting Laws and Oversight
- Dossier: Hunting Accidents in Switzerland
- All Articles: Crime & Hunting
- Template Text: Hobby Hunting and Crime
- Template Text: Reform of Recreational Hunter Training
