Helena MT: Montana Judge
Bear Mauling Caused by Bear not Beasters
Montana is the state with perhaps the largest difference between how its residents feel (smart and independent) and how the rest of the world perceives them (wacky and isolated.) Maybe it’s the northwest’s most idiosyncratic state.
On rare occasions Montana reality and everyone-else’s reality align – as happened in a recent ruling in Helena.
In a move unimaginable in the John Ashcroft era, or even in the Janet Reno era, Montana State Judge Jeremiah Shea ruled that the “major contributing factor” of the West Glacier grizzly bear mauling of Brock Hopkins was the bear and not Mr. Hopkins’ use of cannabis.
Hopkins worked at the Great Bear Adventure private bear park in West Glacier, north of Kalispell. He was mauled by a grizzly bear while on duty feeding the bears in an enclosed area. Hopkins escaped the mauling by digging and sliding under an electric fence.
Hopkins later claimed unemployment compensation because he could not work since he was pretty severely mauled by a grizzly bear (worse than carpal tunnel syndrome.)
Great Bear Adventure fought Hopkins’ blood-stained unemployment application saying he had admitted smoking marijuana before reporting for duty at the park on the day of the mauling.
The judge heard the facts and despite having received not one cent from NORML in campaign contributions, ruled that the bear caused the mauling, not the bud. So, let’s here it for logic and Montana and let those sheep jokes rest for awhile in honor of Judge Jeddah’s understanding of nature.