The Darien Times

Legal problems put Darien's deer committee on chopping block

Written by David DesRoches
Monday, January 30, 2012 12:30 PM

In a statement read at Monday's Board of Selectmen meeting, First Selectman Jayme Stevenson commended the committee members for their time spent managing the deer population, but asserted that there is a "more efficient way" of delivering this service that would eliminate "the town's legal liability created by the annual deer cull."

"I am by no means acquiescing to the public pressure from animal rights activists," Stevenson said, referring to groups such as Darien-based Friends of Animals' efforts to end the deer cull through a heated debate with deer committee Chairman Kent Haydock.

Stevenson expressed agreement with the concept of "a carefully controlled deer cull," and noted that it "is one of several important tools to address the all too numerous deer-on-car accidents, a variety of tick-borne illness and the damage that an over-abundant deer population can cause to our natural environment."

Haydock has volunteered since the committee's 1997 inception to help reduce deer population in town, and he also helped create the Fairfield County Deer Management Alliance in 2004 — one year before the public deer cull began in Selleck's Woods.

It was learned recently that the committee hadn't held an official meeting for at least six years, and that it appointed its own members, which goes against Town Charter rules. Haydock said it's a shame that his years of hard work and volunteerism were reduced to these errors.

"I didn't know exactly what we were," he said, referring the deer committee's organizational structure. "I just went with several other people, and we agreed to do this for the town... Nobody ever told me all this stuff. I did the best I could."

Haydock also said he received no guidance from the town on when to hold meetings or to appoint members. Nancy Rice, Friends of Animals outreach coordinator, said Haydock should have been advised, and the town leadership is to blame.

"They were not paying attention, and they should have been," Rice said. "It's very controversial."

The deer committee was an advisory body, and Haydock said it had little to do with the actual deer cull — an event that was the responsibility of the Parks & Recreation department, according to Haydock.

However, the town canceled the deer cull late last year because the deer committee wasn't covered under the town's insurance. Haydock said the insurance problem was never an issue until people began asking questions through a "scare campaign," using news articles to discredit the public hunt and the committee. Stevenson noted that some deer committee volunteers "have suffered repeated and unjustified personal attack in the press."

Rice said that she was "shocked" by Stevenson's statement, and that the board of selectmen let the deer committee "run wild."

"I think they're trying to cover themselves, after reading that editorial," Rice said, referring to The Darien Times' Jan. 19 edition. "I think they're embarrassed."

Rice added that if it's truly a health issue, the town should consider culling the Japanese barberry population. This invasive plant species harbors a high number of ticks during their juvenile stages of development, and researchers at the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station's Department of Forestry and Agriculture have linked a higher percentage of Lyme-carrying ticks to areas with dense barberry growth.

Haydock maintains that his goal has always been a public health concern, but he lamented the media's coverage of the public hunt, and claimed it was "hijacked" by Friends of Animals whose opinions set the tone of "unbalanced" stories.

"You people started off great," Haydock told The Times, "but then you started publishing all that nonsense by those activists."

A lack of public meetings prompted Friends of Animals to file a complaint with the Freedom of Information Commission in Hartford against Haydock, which ended with the charges dropped. Haydock said he tried his best to be transparent.

"Any times there were any changes in the committee we put it up on the Web," he said. "We really didn't understand all these rules. They need to be changed."

Stevenson said she would support a former member of the deer committee to interview for a spot on the Advisory Board of Health "to provide a conduit for public information on the health issues created by an overabundant deer population."

The first selectman added that the Green Team has given their approval of the new path for the town. While Haydock said he was not interested in the new position, he recommended Dr. Robert George as a suitable volunteer for the health board.

"My active time is over," Haydock said, adding that he will be available if needed.

Rice said that whatever department takes this on "will operate in an open format and reach out to anyone who is interested in this matter and allow them to participate in the process."

While the public hunt is over, Stevenson emphasized the importance of supporting reasonable population control of local ruminants. "...I believe the town should have the ability, along with private home owners, to contract for a deer cull service when we feel that service is needed," she said. "Contracting for this service is common practice in many other towns and mirrors our current Parks & Recreation practice of contracting to eradicate geese in our town parks."

Even though the deer committee appears out the door, the Friends of Animals battle with the town could be an ongoing front. "If the town of Darien continues to kill deer and choose violence over education and respect," Rice said, "then Friends of Animals will continue its fight against this war on wildlife in Darien."

Former First Selectman Dave Campbell, Parks & Rec Director Sue Swiatek and Health Director David Knauf could not be reached for comment.

ddesroches@darientimes.com

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