Group seeks high-fence hunting ban

A sponsoring committee is trying again to outlaw the practice of "high-fence hunting" in North Dakota, submitting paperwork with the secretary of state on Monday for a potential 2010 ballot measure. North Dakota Hunters for Fair Chase is sponsoring the petition, which would outlaw the practice of charging a fee to hunt animals in enclosed, inescapable preserves. The group's co-chairman, Roger Kaseman, said they had enough signatures to put a similar measure on the 2008 general election ballot, but failed because of technical errors. Now, Kaseman said he thinks there is still enough support in North Dakota to outlaw the practice that he said goes against fair chase hunting principles. Kaseman said there are about a dozen hunting preserves in North Dakota, but Shawn Schafer, the executive director of the North Dakota Deer Rancher Association, said there are six. Schafer, who opposes the ban, said the hunting preserves in North Dakota are legitimate businesses that help promote hunting. "We feel it's a violation of our private property rights," Schafer said of the potential ballot measure. "The hunting that we do is legal and ethical."...BismarckTribune