Gaia is allowed to live for the time being. Bear JJ4 allegedly attacked and killed a female runner in the Trentino region of northern Italy in early April, which is why the provincial government had already decided to kill her. But Trento’s administrative court has now suspended the firing order again – initially until June 27.
The court therefore upheld the objections of several animal welfare associations. The president of the Trentino-Alto Adige region, Maurizio Fugatti, issued a decree to kill the bear very quickly after the attack on a forest path in Val di Sole. Following a lawsuit by animal rights activists, a court suspended that instruction for the time being in mid-April. A second, later order to kill was also rejected.
The danger is not sufficiently proven
JJ4, sister of “problem bear” Bruno, killed in Bavaria in 2006, was captured and taken to a secure game reserve in the region. Animal rights activists had a report drawn up in early May that the runner was not killed by JJ4, but by an adult male bear. This can be seen by the distance between the canines in the bite wounds.
The decision to put down the MJ5 bear, which was also alleged to have attacked and injured people, was also suspended with Friday’s decision. Among other things, the judges justified their decision with the fact that the dangerousness of the two animals – but especially of the JJ4 – assumed by the province and the authorities had not been sufficiently proven. No “sufficient investigation” has been carried out in this regard. Stakeholders can now submit additional explanations, reasons, evidence or objections by the end of June. A final decision on the matter should be taken in mid-December.
Not only in Italy has the debate over the coexistence of bears and humans intensified since the runner’s death. Environmentalists had demonstrated before the judicial decision to release the bear. The animal protection association LAV writes in a statement of a “victory” in court and that there are concrete possibilities to relocate the bears.