Dentist who shot Cecil the lion finds himself in a legal thicket

A 115-year-old U.S. law that’s grown like kudzu now hangs over the head of the Minnesota dentist who shot Cecil the lion.

But it’s one of the Supreme Court’s newest decisions that could shape how officials may handle angry members of the public who have raged against the bow-and-arrow wielding dentist, Dr. Walter J. Palmer.

Now both hunter and hunted, Palmer has ventured into a legal thicket that’s almost certainly darker than he ever could have imagined. It’s also getting thicker by the day, as lawmakers take aim on their own.

“Let’s not be cowardly lions when it comes to trophy killings,” Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., said Friday as he introduced legislation inspired by Cecil’s death.

Menendez dubbed his new bill the Conserving Ecosystems by Ceasing the Importation of Large (CECIL) Animal Trophies Act. Menendez, who is facing trial on corruption charges, was the first member of Congress to thrust himself into the Cecil story line.

Menendez’s bill, even if it becomes law, won’t directly affect Palmer. Other laws, both foreign and domestic, might.

Investigators in both Zimbabwe and the United States want to talk to Palmer in connection with the shooting of Cecil in early July. Reportedly, Palmer and his guides lured Cecil from the protected confines of Hwange National Park. First shot by an arrow, Cecil was later tracked, finished off with a rifle and beheaded.

Zimbabwe’s environment minister Oppah Muchinguri, called on Friday for Palmer’s extradition.

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service officials are taking the lead in the United States, guided by a law first passed in 1900 commonly called the Lacey Act. On Friday afternoon, officials revealed via Twitter that they had been “voluntarily” contacted late Thursday “by a rep” of Palmer.

Named for an Iowa congressman and staunch conservationist, John F. Lacey, the much-amended law now spans some 11 pages of the U.S. Code and covers much more territory than originally envisioned.

Briefly, the Lacey Act makes it “unlawful to import, export, sell, acquire, or purchase” wildlife taken in violation of U.S., state or foreign laws. A felony conviction can result in a fine of up to $250,000 and a prison sentence of up to five years.

This story was originally published July 31, 2015 at 10:15 PM with the headline "Dentist who shot Cecil the lion finds himself in a legal thicket."