Now Reading: Washington man charged with shooting bald eagle near chickens
-
01
Washington man charged with shooting bald eagle near chickens
US federal prosecutors have charged 66-year-old Benjamin G. Allen of Brush Prairie, Washington, with shooting and killing a bald eagle near his chickens on 5 February 2026. Wildlife officers found the adult…
The Story in Brief
US federal prosecutors have charged 66-year-old Benjamin G. Allen of Brush Prairie, Washington, with shooting and killing a bald eagle near his chickens on 5 February 2026. Wildlife officers found the adult eagle with a head wound; X-rays later revealed two shotgun pellets lodged in its brain. A witness reported hearing a gunshot or firecracker that morning. Allen has been summoned to appear in federal court in Tacoma on 8 September. He faces violations of the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act and the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, which carry penalties of up to two years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The allegations remain unproven.
The Indian Opinion
The story plays into two familiar but lazy narratives: the farmer-as-victim defending livestock from a predator, and the overzealous federal government prosecuting a man for protecting his property. Neither is supported by the facts so far. The bald eagle is a protected species under US law, and its status as a recovered conservation success does not give landowners a free hand to shoot it. The court will have to determine whether Allen reasonably believed the eagle posed an imminent threat to his chickens, or whether he knowingly broke the law. That distinction matters, sentiment alone should not decide the case.
Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above.
