The president of Hautes-Alpes condemned for offering a wolf tail

He believes that his gesture was a “political joke”. Jean-Marie Bernard, the president (Les Républicains) of the Hautes-Alpes department council, was sentenced, Friday March 12, to a 10,000 euros fine, including 5,000 suspended sentences, for having offered the former prefect of the department a wolf tail, a protected animal. Complainant associations, civil parties, each benefit from compensation of 600 euros, plus 500 euros in legal costs.

“This criminal conviction was the most important”, reacted to the exit of the hearing Catherine Bouteron, the wolf referent at the Alpine Society for the Protection of Nature (SAPN), one of the complainant associations, saying to herself “very happy” of the court’s decision.

The president of Hautes-Alpes had given on February 21, 2020 this appendix of the animal to the prefect Cécile Bigot-Dekeyzer during his departure ceremony. He then claimed a “political act” to support breeders. The conviction by the Gap Criminal Court is “disappointing” et “symbolic”, estimated Philippe Neveu, lawyer of the elected. He said regret “the media pressure, environmental and emotional, very strong in this file”.

“I find it a bit abusive to find myself condemned for acts that I did not commit”, commented Jean-Marie Bernard. “What interests me is to advance solutions to improve the lot of breeders in relation to wolf predation”, he added at the exit of the court. “I deplore this decision rendered under the pressure of extremist environmentalist groups who are disconnected from the reality of the territories and the problems of professionals in the rural world”, he adds in a press release.

“The political nature of his approach should have been a cause exonerating his responsibility“, estimated the lawyer of Jean-Marie Bernard, specifying that the decision on a possible appeal had not yet been decided.