Couple: Rewrite law on roadkill

PRINEVILLE (AP) - A Crook County couple wants to change the law to allow Oregonians to take animals killed by cars without getting permission from state officials.

Sheila Clauson and her husband, John Wakeman, are circulating a petition to change the law, which says it is a misdemeanor to collect animal carcasses without a letter from the state Department of Fish and Wildlife.

"We're proposing that a normal, everyday person be able take an animal that's been hit by a car - after calling the authorities - and use it," Clauson said.

The couple started the campaign after they found a buck that had been hit by a car on the side of a local road. The animal had a broken leg and was struggling to get up. By the time a sheriff's deputy arrived, it was dead.

The ODFW collected the animal 24 hours later - after the meat was spoiled, Clausen said.

"We couldn't touch, but someone needed to do something," she said. "The point is, it made us mad. Here we have perfectly good meat sitting on the side of the road and you can't touch it."

State Rep. Greg Smith, R-Heppner, said he supports the campaign, but that other lawmakers are worried that changing the law could lead to poaching.

"That is used as an excuse," he said. "If the folks in Prineville need someone to carry this to the Legislature, I'd be the first to raise my hand."

The couple has collected 300 signatures on their petition they titled the "Oregon Deer and Elk Road Kill Law."

Under the proposal, anyone who finds an elk or deer on the road can remove the carcass - if officials are notified and the person can present identification. The animal must be dead.

Meg Eden, an ODFW wildlife biologist, said most roadside meat is too damaged to eat. The agency gives road-kill meat to wildlife rehabilitation centers, she said.

"There's very little meat, most of the time, that hasn't been bruised, exposed or contaminated," she said.