Will Hunting and Fishing Images and Broadcasts Be Deemed Illegal?

Supreme Court to Hear U.S. v Stevens Case Tomorrow
Will Hunting and Fishing Images and Broadcasts Be Deemed Illegal?

Professional Outdoor Media Association

Washington, DC --(AmmoLand.com)-The Professional Outdoor Media Association’s (POMA) Executive Director Laurie Lee Dovey is headed for Washington, D.C. today, to hear the arguments in the U.S. v. Stevens case, which is being heard by the Supreme Court tomorrow.

To set up an interview with Dovey for this afternoon or evening or tomorrow (post argument), e-mail lldovey@professionaloutdoormedia.org or call 814-525-6989.

POMA, headquartered in Johnstown, Pa., is a professional association of traditional outdoor sports journalists and hunting and fishing industry professionals and organizations.

POMA filed an amicus curiae brief in the case, on behalf of its members. The government is asking the Supreme Court for the power to censor hunting and fishing imagery, creating a new exception to the First Amendment for the first time in 25 years.

At issue in U.S. v. Stevens, No. 08-769, is a 1999 federal law that makes it a crime to create, sell or possess videos and other depictions of cruelty to animals. The case arose over the conviction of a Virginia man, Robert Stevens, who received a three-year prison sentence from a Western Pennsylvania court for selling videos that included scenes of hunting with dogs. The Justices will hear arguments in the case on Tuesday, October 6.

In addition to working with the Washington, D.C., Jones Day Law Firm to file a brief on behalf of its members, Dovey coordinated a larger group of amici from a wide range of constituencies.

The American Society of Media Photographers, North American Nature Photographers, Pennsylvania Outdoor Writers Association, Southeastern Outdoor Press Association, Texas Outdoor Writers Association and more than 600 individual journalists, outdoor industry professionals and sportsmen joined POMA’s brief.

POMA members, such as the National Rifle Association, Safari Club International, National Shooting Sports Foundation, and others filed individual briefs on behalf of their members.

• Review a case summary
• Review comments from POMA’s executive director regarding the case
• Review POMA’s amicus curiae brief
• Review facts on the national economic contribution of hunting and fishing

About:
POMA Mission … The Professional Outdoor Media Association is a group of individual communicators and Corporate Partners who believe in, defend, support and promote the heritage of hunting, fishing, shooting and traditional outdoor sports through writing, photography and other means. By doing so, members hope to educate the general public about these sports and encourage more participation in them. The organization serves the membership by helping members grow professionally, improve their skills, better their working environments and enhance their businesses.