Hiker finds black bear cubs shot to death, New Jersey officials say. Now come charges

A hiker came across three dead black bear cubs along the border of a state park and called police, according to the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection.

When authorities arrived, they found a fourth dead cub near Ringwood State Park on Nov. 13, department spokesman Larry Hajna told McClatchy News in a statement.

The cubs were shot to death, resulting in an investigation, Hajna said.

Now a 22-year-old man is accused of fatally shooting the young bears, according to the DEP.

On Nov. 15, state Fish and Wildlife conservation officers charged the man with hunting with a firearm without a firearm license, hunting/taking of bear during closed season, careless discharge (of firearm) and more, Hajna said. Now he’s facing several fines and will answer to the charges in a Ringwood court.

In reaction to the cub killings, one Ringwood resident told NorthJersey.com “everyone I’ve talked to is devastated and heartbroken by this cruel and senseless act.”

Bear hunting in New Jersey will be legally allowed again in December following a unanimous decision by the state’s Fish and Game Council, The New York Times reported. In 2021, Gov. Phil Murphy outlawed bear hunting in the state.

The decision allows 20% of New Jersey’s black bears to be killed, according to the Humane Society of the United States.

Murphy said in a statement that although he “committed to ending the bear hunt … the data demands that we act now to prevent tragic bear-human interactions,” according to the Times.

Meanwhile, Elissa Frank, the Humane Society’s director in the state, criticized the decision to kill 20% of the bear population, calling it a “state-sanctioned slaughter” in a Nov. 15 news release.

“The most effective way to stop bear conflicts is to provide people with bear-resistant trash cans and educate them about the importance of taking common sense precautions to avoid attracting bears, like taking down bird feeders and keeping pet and livestock food unavailable—not instituting a futile trophy hunt,” Frank added.

As for the man accused of killing the bear cubs, officials did not specify a motive.

Ringwood State Park is in northern New Jersey, directly below the New York state border.

This story was originally published November 16, 2022 at 4:47 PM.

Julia Marnin

McClatchy DC

Julia Marnin covers courts for McClatchy News, writing about criminal and civil affairs, including cases involving policing, corrections, civil liberties, fraud, and abuses of power. As a reporter on McClatchy’s National Real-Time Team, she’s also covered the COVID-19 pandemic and a variety of other topics since joining in 2021, following a fellowship with Newsweek. Born in Biloxi, Mississippi, she was raised in South Jersey and is now based in New York State.