hunting with hounds judged in court

Images that cause controversy. In January 2021, a deer burst into Chantilly station (Oise). He is chased by a pack of hounds during a hunt. The wild animal had then managed to flee. Consequence: rail traffic had to be interrupted for more than two hours. This Monday, the association which had organized the hunt and two participants were tried for endangering the lives of others. Their lawyers pleaded for release. According to them, the animal would have had a surprising behavior, and in no case the hunters.

A hazard for the hunters’ lawyer

“It’s called a hazard. It’s one in a million cases. It hadn’t happened since 1910”, confides the lawyer of the hunters. For them, this phenomenon is rare. However, several town halls have banned this type of hunting near cities. Broadcast images regularly provoke clashes between hunters and anti-hunting activists. This is precisely the case near Compiègne in 2020. An exhausted deer had then found refuge near a construction site. The prosecutor demanded 1,000 euros in fines against the hunters and 10,000 euros against the association.