News reports of the Bald Eagle shot in Bell Township, Westmoreland County, in April of 2003

LIGONIER - Pennsylvania Game Commission Southwest Region Director Matt Hough today announced that the agency is seeking information on the illegal shooting of a mature bald eagle in Westmoreland County. Hough noted that Wildlife Conservation Officer Gary Toward is investigating this incident, and is asking the public for information about the person or persons responsible.

The injured eagle was found in the Bell Township area [Avonmore - Beaver Run Reservoir - Kiskiminetas River] by a local resident who reported the incident to the Game Commission. The concerned citizen also reported seeing the eagle's mate flying overhead. The caller later accompanied WCOs Gary Toward and Tom Fazi as they recovered the bird.

The injured eagle was taken to Tamarack Wildlife Rehabilitation Center in Crawford County. This wildlife rehabilitation center has extensive experience working with eagles. After a physical examination, including X-rays of the bird, it was revealed that the bird had been shot. WCO Toward immediately began a criminal investigation.

"Fortunately, in this case, the rehabilitation center is cautiously optimistic that the bird will not only survive, but it will also recover enough to be released back into the wild at the capture site," Toward said. "This fact became even more important following the discovery of an active nest site not far from where the bird was found."

The Pennsylvania State Police provided WCO Toward with helicopter time to make the successful search for the nest site.

"This was a senseless act," Toward said. "Only recently have sightings of these birds become a little more common, and having an active nest in this area is, to my knowledge, the first in Westmoreland County in a long time. To have someone shoot one is an absolute shame.

"I am asking the public for help. If anyone knows or hears anything about this illegal shooting, they can call our regional office toll free at 1-877-877-7137. I will be grateful for any and all assistance. Any information we do receive will be held in the strictest confidence."

The Westmoreland Bird & Nature Club is collecting money to offer a reward for information leading to a conviction of the person who shot the nesting Bald Eagle at the Beaver Run Reservoir in Westmoreland County on April 29. Thus far, our club along with the Three Rivers Birding Club and the Audubon Society of Western Pennsylvania has accumulated a little over $800. If you would like to join us in this endeavor individually or as an organization, please mail your check, made out to the Westmoreland Bird & Nature Club, to our Treasurer Rose Tillmann, Box 188, New Derry, PA 15571. Rose is keeping records. If a conviction does not result, your money will be refunded.

Westmoreland County Eagle Shooting Case Solved

LIGONIER -- Pennsylvania Game Commission Southwest Region Director Matt Hough today announced that the investigation into the illegal shooting of a mature bald eagle in Westmoreland County has been solved.

"Wildlife Conservation Officer Gary Toward did an absolutely tremendous job investigating this case," Hough said.

The injured eagle was found in Bell Township area by a local resident who reported the incident to the Game Commission. The injured eagle was taken to Tamarack Wildlife Rehabilitation Center in Crawford County. After a physical examination, including x-rays of the bird, revealed that it had been shot, WCO Toward immediately began a criminal investigation.

As a result of assistance provided to WCO Toward by the Pennsylvania State Police, Game Commission Southwest Region Dispatcher Garry Radar and the public, the individual who shot the eagle was identified as Shannon Stacey Binda, 36, of Jeannette.

Southwest Region Law Enforcement Supervisor John Smith offered praise to the public for its help.

"This investigation began and ended with information provided to us by the public," Smith said. "Without that help, this case might never have been solved."

Based upon an interview with Mr. Binda, WCO Toward and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Agent Bill Anderson agreed that Binda would be assessed $4,000 in fines and restitution. In addition, Binda waived his right to contest a three-year loss of hunting and furtaking privileges, and he forfeited his shotgun to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. He recently met with Game Commission officers and Agent Anderson at the Southwest Region office to settle the charges against him.

"This was a case of an individual mistakenly identifying a mature bald eagle as a roosting turkey," WCO Toward said. "Of course, that doesn't excuse the hunter's actions, but we should all feel better knowing it was not an intentional act. The physical evidence at the scene supports the hunter's claim of mistaken identification.

"Mr. Binda panicked when he realized what he had done. While he did not come forward to report his mistake, he was very cooperative when we confronted him with our evidence. He expressed remorse and said he just wanted to put the whole thing behind him."

The injured male eagle has recovered from most of its injuries, but it cannot be returned to the wild because it has lost eyesight in its right eye. This male was part of a pair of eagles that had been maintaining an active nest site not far from where the injured bird was found. The Pennsylvania State Police provided WCO Toward with helicopter time to make the successful search for the nest site, which showed two eaglets were in the nest.

To reduce the increased food-gathering burden placed on the female eagle, Toward placed partially skinned road-killed deer in the vicinity of the nest tree.

"Helping the female at this single-parent nest became one of our priorities," said WCO Toward. "At the time, she had two youngsters to take care of and surely needed any assistance she could get."

Bald eagles are found throughout North America, most often around water where they catch and scavenge fish. Other carrion, and live, small animals also are among their prey. Eagles don't reach adulthood and begin nesting until age four or five. They nest in large trees near water, and normally produce one to three young per year. Adults will continue using and seasonally add to the same nest for years.

Policeman keeps job after shooting
Officer fined, shotgun forfeited

A Jeannette police officer was expected to keep his job despite an incident in which he mistakenly shot and injured a bald eagle earlier this year in northern Westmoreland County then failed to report it.

Jeannette police Chief Carl Shifko said Wednesday that Patrolman Shannon Stacey Binda, 36, of Jeannette, was disciplined by the city in connection with the shooting of the eagle in April in Bell Township and would be returning to duty.

Binda, who began "sick leave" in early July, was due to return to work Sunday.

"It was investigated. We did an internal disciplinary thing, and that's where it's at. It was handled internally, and it's a private matter that we've taken care of," Shifko said.

The police chief refused to discuss the nature of the disciplinary action, citing the advice of city Solicitor. Gary Falatovich.

"He was disciplined, and it's an internal matter that we're not allowed to discuss," Shifko said.

The Pennsylvania Game Commission issued a news release yesterday that said Binda recently pleaded no contest to a violation of the U.S. Eagle Act.

Binda was to be assessed a fine and restitution totaling $4,000 and agreed to a three-year loss of his hunting and fur-taking privileges, according to the Game Commission. He also forfeited his shotgun to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

"This was a case of an individual mistakenly identifying a mature bald eagle as a roosting turkey," said Wildlife Conservation Officer Gary Toward, the lead investigator. "Of course, that doesn't excuse the hunter's actions, but we should all feel better knowing it was not an intentional act. The physical evidence at the scene supports the hunter's claim of mistaken identification.

"Mr. Binda panicked when he realized what he had done. While he did not come forward to report his mistake, he was very cooperative when we confronted him with our evidence. He expressed remorse and said he just wanted to put the whole thing behind him."

Attempts to reach Binda for comment were unsuccessful yesterday. Jeannette Mayor John Kisic, who oversees the police department, and members of city council couldn't be reached and didn't return telephone calls.

The commission didn't say in the release what linked Binda to the shooting, but thanked the public for its help. A $500 reward had been offered for information leading to a successful prosecution in the case.

"This investigation began and ended with information provided to us by the public," said John Smith, the commission's southwest region law enforcement supervisor. "Without that help, this case might never have been solved."

The male eagle was shot with a shotgun during the early-spring gobbler-hunting season. A local resident found the injured bird and reported the incident to the game commission.

The eagle was taken to Tamarack Wildlife Rehabilitation Center in Crawford County. After a physical examination, including X-rays, it was determined the eagle had been shot. The eagle has recovered from most of its injuries, but it will not be returned to the wild because it has lost sight in its right eye, the game commission said. The male was part of a pair of eagles that had been maintaining an active nesting site not far from where the injured bird was found, according to the commission.

Bald eagles had been classified as an endangered species because of their declining numbers. In July 1995 the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service upgraded their status in the lower 48 states to threatened.

Earlier this summer, a game commission preliminary census determined there were at least 68 eagle nests in the state, up from 63 last year, 55 in 2001 and 48 in 2000. But new nests this year were projected to be fewer in number than in past years.

Eagle shootings are not unheard of in Pennsylvania.

Lee Covert was sentenced to 100 days in federal prison and $2,010 in fines for killing and mutilating a bald eagle in Franklin County in 2000. Covert claimed he mistook the immature eagle for a hawk.

And in 2001, the Game Commission was investigating the shooting of a immature eagle in Bradford County and a golden eagle in Sullivan County.

The incident with the eagle also wasn't Binda's first hunting infraction.

In December 1999, he pleaded guilty to a summary offense of firing a weapon at a deer while within 150 yards of an occupied structure. He paid a $200 fine and $33.50 in court costs, records showed.

"He made a bad mistake," Shifko said of the latest incident. "We handled it. Everyone's kind of satisfied to get on with life."

Jeannette officer who shot bald eagle surrenders gun, pays fine

It was big and feathered and sitting in a tree during the April turkey season, so Shannon Stacey Binda shotgunned it.

But it wasn't fair game. When the off-duty police officer from Jeannette realized that he'd shot a federally protected American bald eagle, he panicked and ran.

Last week at the Pennsylvania Game Commission office in Ligonier, Binda handed over his shotgun to federal Fish and Wildlife Agent Bill Anderson. He agreed to pay a $4,000 fine and miss the next three hunting and trapping seasons for violating the United States Eagle Act.

"It was a case of an individual mistakenly identifying a mature bald eagle as a roosting turkey," according to a Game Commission press release. "While he did not come forward to report his mistake, [Binda] was very cooperative when we confronted him with our evidence. He expressed remorse and said he just wanted to put the whole thing behind him."

Jeannette police said Binda was disciplined, but would not provide details.

Game Commission spokesman Jerry Feaser said "good hard police work and a confidential informant" connected the injured eagle to the hunter.

Feaser said a Bell resident found the injured eagle in May and contacted Game Commission officers, who took it to a Crawford County wildlife rehabilitation center.

A veterinarian determined that the adult male eagle had been shot, and Wildlife Conservation Officer Gary Toward was called to investigate.

The bird recovered from most of its injuries, but it cannot be returned to the wild because its right eye was damaged. It was one of a nesting pair known to inhabit the area, Feaser said.

A state police aerial survey determined that the mother bird was caring for two nestlings, so Toward placed road-kill deer near the nesting site over the following weeks.

"She had two youngsters to take care of and surely needed any help she could get," he said.

Eagles are considered a "threatened" species in Pennsylvania, and come under special federal protection. A midsummer census found 68 eagle nests in the state, up from 55 in 2001.

The Bell eaglets are fully fledged and "on their own out there," Feaser said. Binda will return to duty next week.

Police officer fined for shooting bald eagle in Bell

A Jeannette police officer paid a fine and restitution totalling $4,000 for shooting and wounding a bald eagle last spring in Bell Township.

Officer Shannon S. Binda, 36, of Jeannette, received undisclosed disciplinary action, according to Jeannette Police Chief Carl Shifko, who declined to specify the penalty against Binda.

"Basically it was handled internally, because it's a private matter," Shifko said."He was handled."

The shooting on private property adjoining Beaver Run Reservoir in Bell affected the first nesting pair of bald eagles in the county in more than 100 years. The adult male was shot with a shotgun in late April during the spring wild turkey hunting season.

This was a senseless act," said Wildlife Conservation Officers Gary Toward said shortly after the incident."Only recently have sightings of these birds become a little more common, and having an active nest in this area is, to my knowledge, the first in Westmoreland County in a long time. To have someone shoot one is an absolute shame."

The U.S. Attorney's office in Pittsburgh charged Binda with a violation of the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act. He paid a $1,000 fine. The maximum penalty Binda faced was one year in prison and a $100,000 fine. He also paid $3,000 in restitution to the state Game Commission for the care and rehabilitation of the eagle, a three-year loss of his hunting privileges and forfeited the .12-gauge shotgun used in the shooting.

Mel Schake, game commission information officer from Ligonier, said authorities treated Binda fairly.

"There were no deals cut here -- we treated the perpetrator the same as if he were anyone else. It didn't matter to us if he was a police officer or a bricklayer, Schake said. "We came to the best resolution under the circumstances, especially with him conceding guilt, and agreed on the fine and restitution costs -- as well as his losing the expensive shotgun that was turned over to the USFWS."

Toward said Binda shot the bird without realizing it was an eagle, so the penalties are reasonable.

"This was a case of an individual mistakenly identifying a mature bald eagle as a roosting turkey," Toward said. "Of course, that doesn't excuse the hunter's actions, but we should all feel better knowing it was not an intentional act. The physical evidence at the scene supports the hunter's claim of mistaken identification.

"Mr. Binda panicked when he realized what he had done," said Toward. "While he did not come forward to report his mistake, he was very cooperative when we confronted him with our evidence. He expressed remorse and said he just wanted to put the whole thing behind him. We spoke at length with the US Attorney's office ... to decide what was the best course of action."

The incident came to light when another person found the injured eagle in the woods and called the Game Commission.

The concerned citizen also reported seeing the eagle's mate flying overhead.

The caller later accompanied game officers as they recovered the bird. Toward immediately began a criminal investigation.

"This investigation began and ended with information provided to us by the public," Game Commission Southwest Region Law Enforcement Supervisor John Smith said. "Without that help, this case might never have been solved."

"There was a reward being offered for at least $500, and we probably could have increased that amount pretty easily," said Schake. "But nobody seems to be applying for the reward -- I guess they just feel good in doing the right thing by providing information on this situation."

The injured eagle was taken to Tamarack Wildlife Rehabilitation Center in Crawford County. This wildlife rehabilitation center has extensive experience working with eagles. It was there, after a physical examination, including X-rays of the bird, that investigators confirmed it had been shot.

While the adult male bald eagle has recovered from most of its injuries, it can not be released back into the wild because it now is blind in its right eye.

"The eagle is still at the wildlife rehabilitation facility, and we're not sure where it will end up from there," Schake said.

"While we'd like to see it released, all of the experts we've spoken with about eagles -- and this one in particular being blind in one eye, strongly recommend against its release, since survival is not probable."

"The nest held two fledglings -- which have grown enough to leave the nest and be on their own. The female eagle is no longer at the nest site -- which is not unusual with the young being old enough to be on their own."

Home sought for eagle accidentally shot by officer

BY BOB STILES

Sue DeArment is making telephone calls and putting information on the Internet in hopes of finding a qualified home for a bald eagle that was shot earlier this year in northern Westmoreland County by an off-duty Jeannette police officer.

DeArment, executive director of the Tamarack Wildlife Rehabilitation and Education Center in Saegertown, Craw-ford County, said the male eagle cannot be returned to the wild because of the injuries it suffered. The bird was taken to the rehabilitation center after the incident in April in Bell Township.

"He's recovered, but he's not returnable because he's blind in one eye and he cannot adapt to being blind in one eye," DeArment said. "He would not be able to survive in the wild."

Shannon Stacey Binda, 36, of Jeannette, a city patrolman, agreed to pay $4,000 in fines and restitution and surrender his hunting and fur-taking privileges for three years in connection with the eagle shooting, according to the state Game Commission.

Wildlife Conservation Officer Gary Toward said Binda mistakenly identified the mature eagle as a roosting turkey during spring gobbler season. Binda panicked when he realized what he had done and didn't come forward to authorities but cooperated once he was confronted with evidence, Toward said.

Binda was disciplined in an undisclosed way by the city of Jeannette and returned to his job a few weeks ago after being on sick leave, according to police Chief Carl Shifko.

DeArment said she contacted experts at the Raptor Center at the University of Minnesota and they said the eagle "absolutely cannot" be released into the wild.

"In trying to compensate (for the blindness) he flies in circles," she said.

The bird was hit by several shotgun pellets: one in the right eye, four in a broken wing and one in the abdomen.

Finding a home is made more difficult because not just anyone can take the eagle.

"I've gotten numerous calls from people who want to take him. And I say, 'No, you can't have him,'" because they lack necessary permits or permission, DeArment said.

DeArment said she called zoos in Erie and Pittsburgh and the National Aviary on the North Side, but none of them could take the eagle.

"Some didn't have a facility for him. Others had enough bald eagles for the space they have," she said.

An Ohio woman, who is a full-time licensed rehabilitator of birds, also has made inquiry and offers a possible home for the eagle.

"She uses them for education purposes, which means she'll work with him so he gets use to being on display ... and educate the public on bald eagles," DeArment said, explaining the bird is "very stressed out and afraid."

Because of licenses and permission needed from federal and state agencies, it could take up to a month before DeArment knows whether the Ohio woman is allowed to have the bird.

State Game Commission spokesman Jerry Feaser said his agency and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in particular will have a say in where the eagle goes.

"You have to be someone experienced in this area and trained in handling, these types of animals," he said.

Both agencies can require specific permits to have the bird.

DeArment said the shooting is particularly sad because the male was half of the only known pair of nesting eagles in the county.

Bob Stiles can be reached at bstiles@tribweb.com or 724-836-6622.

Bald Eagle Reward Paid, the shooting story

by Dick Byers

Fri, 21 Nov 2003

Hi everyone,

Last evening Rose Tillmann and I of the Westmoreland Bird and Nature Club attended the board meeting of the Westmoreland County Sportsmen's League where PA Game Commission officer Gary Toward gave us the names of the three informants whose testimony led to the arrest of the man who shot the male bald eagle at the Beaver Run Reservoir. Rose (our club treasurer) wrote out three checks for $319 each. Of the $957 reward money we collected, $250 came from the Audubon Society of Western PA, $250 from the Three Rivers Birding Club and the remaining $457 from the Westmoreland Bird & Nature Club. ($250 from the club and $207 from private individuals). Club member Linda Lou Baker raised $142 by herself from patrons at the Italian Club in Export where she works.

Checks amounting to $500 were also paid out from the Sportsmen's League, so the informants received a total of $1457 in reward money. We are withholding their names. One wished to be anonymous since he knew the defendant personally. The other two didn't care but I think the public should know they can testify to wildlife criminal activity without fear of retaliation by the accused.

After the meeting we got more details of the incident from officer Gary Toward. The man who shot the eagle did not do it intentionally, but I lost all sympathy for him. There were two hunters involved. Officer Toward had good reasons to believe they were on the Beaver Run property (posted no hunting and no trespassing) well before hunting hours. The male was perched 50 yards away from the nest on a dead snag. The hunters heard turkeys gobbling while they were walking a logging road that circles the nest. The nest is high on a ridge overlooking the lake. The defendant saw the silhouette of the eagle on the dead snag and thought it was a turkey, but hollered to his buddy that he couldn't see a beard. His buddy replied, "I can see a beard, shoot it!" Remember this is probably before regular hunting hours and too dark to make out the prominent white head and tail of an adult bald eagle. After the shot the bird came off the perch and flew to lower ground near the lakeshore. Upon seeing the bird in the air the shooter said to his buddy that it looked like an eagle, to which his buddy replied, "Impossible, there are no eagles around here." When they found the bird perched in a multiflora rose bush below they could see it was an adult bald eagle and got out of there. They were seen leaving the area by two local residents who thought it odd they were leaving at about the time hunting hours were just starting.

Later that afternoon, Bob Shanta, whose property borders the Beaver Run Reservoir property, was walking his dog along the boundary. The dog got excited, ran into the reservoir area and discovered the bird which Bob immediately reported. Investigating Officer Toward, upon getting the information, was at first skeptical about the bird being an eagle, but went down the next morning to check it out. When he saw the eagle he went down to a Game Commission warehouse and got some boxes and a blanket. He called WCO Tom Fazi for help and the two of them captured the bird rather easily with the blanket and put him in a cardboard box. The bird could not fly and did not resist much at all. At the time they could not tell that the bird had been shot. There was some fluid around the eye, but no blood anywhere. They thought the bird had injured itself or was sick, so they arranged transport to the Tamarack Rehab Center in Crawford County. They met the rehabilitators at a point on I-80 and transferred the bird. The rehabilitators also thought the bird had just flown into something. X-rays taken several days later revealed the lead pellets and a broken wing. One of the pellets had entered the right eye. When Gary Toward learned that the bird had been shot he made arrangements with the state police to overfly the Beaver Run with their helicopter to look for a possible nest. They found it within minutes with one eaglet in it. Upon landing officer Toward immediately took a road killed deer into the nest vicinity, partly skinned it and left it for the female eagle to help feed her young. He then began a door to door investigation for any information and found the two men who had seen the hunters leaving at about the time they should have been just starting to hunt. Those two men provided officer Toward with a description of the hunter's vehicle even down to the decals on the car.

Later, a third man overheard the two hunters talking about being on the Beaver Run property and going back to look for a shell. Knowing about the eagle shooting occurring that same morning, this third informant notified the Game Commission. Toward now had the name of the man and where he lived. He found the car matching the description he had, except that the decals had been scraped off. When they questioned the defendant, Shannon S. Binda, of Jeanette, he confessed to the shooting.

The male eagle recovered from the injured wing but became blind in his right eye, so he was not returned to the nest area. While the investigation was going on Toward took road killed deer from the highways and replaced the old carcasses so the female eagle always had fresh meat available. Although he saw that the carcasses were being used, he never saw the female eagle using them. He monitored the nest and found a healthy second eaglet, so the birds seemed to be doing well and he continued to provide fresh deer and to remove the old carcasses. On July 4th, an appropriate day for our national bird, the two eaglets fledged from the nest, so this part of the story had a happy ending. Bob Mulvihill of the Powdermill Bird Banding Station believes that this has ornithological significance that a single eagle parent could successfully raise two young with the help of carrion. He and Gary Toward both believe the male eagle should be released, that these birds have resilience beyond our imagination and it would be better for the bird to take his chances than spend the rest of his life in a cage. Eagles are long lived in captivity easily surviving to 25-35 years or more. The bird may be able to survive just on carrion. Bald eagles are scavengers by nature as much as they are hunters of fish.

I think officer Gary Toward did a magnificent job on this case and went beyond the call of duty with his concern of the lone eagle parent. He could not have made an arrest without the information provided by the informants, but his door to door investigation turned up two of these men who testified.

Pictures were taken at the meeting and the story will soon appear in local newspapers. The word needs to get out that there are organizations around who will provide reward money for information on people who shoot endangered species.

Dick Byers
Westmoreland Bird & Nature Club