Posted by Jonathan Adler:
Last Gasp for San Diego Seals?
http://volokh.com/archives/archive_2009_07_19-2009_07_25.shtml#1248389640
A year ago I [1]blogged about the legal order that could force the
eviction of the seals that had taken over the at the Scripps
"children's pool" in La Jolla, California. This past Monday, a local
judge ordered the eviction to proceed, but the San Diego city attorney
is going to court to try and have the order overturned, relying in
part on a newly enacted state law. The AP [2]reports:
The announcement by City Attorney Jan Goldsmith was the latest
development in an emotional and yearslong battle over who should
have exclusive use of the protected cove � children or seals � in
the posh seaside neighborhood of La Jolla.
On Monday, a San Diego Superior Court judge ordered the city to
begin chasing away the creatures from the cove, called the
Children's Pool, by Thursday or face heavy fines in order to comply
with a 2005 ruling in a lawsuit brought by a disgruntled swimmer.
The city said it would blast recordings of barking dogs to scare
away the pesky pinnipeds at the cost of $688,000 a year. San Diego
cannot use force because the seals are a federally protected marine
species.
But just hours later, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed a bill that
added a marine mammal park to the list of permissible uses for the
Children's Pool � giving the city a legal tool that could allow the
seals to stay put. . . .
Attorney Paul Kennerson, who represents the disgruntled swimmer,
said Senate Bill 428 does not absolve the city of its
responsibility to maintain the cove exclusively for the use of
children.
Thursday's hearing is scheduled just 90 minutes before the city's
deadline to begin chasing the seals away.
References
1. http://www.volokh.com/posts/1204494110.shtml
2.
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gCy6V68hrIrW8QjWrwIKhpF-HhAgD99J729O0
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