Hunting and Legislation: Puglia, the regional councilor Marmo presents a question regarding the checks carried out by the Voluntary Hunting Guards. Can they contest the non-payment of the ATC fee?
The councilor of the Puglia Region, Nino Marmo, presented a written answer question to the President of the Region and the Councilor for Agriculture regarding the checks carried out by the Voluntary Hunting Guards following the protests of many hunters for the protest by the volunteers failure to pay the annual registration fee to the ATC. "Many hunters contest the excess of power that would appear on the part of the hunting surveillance officers who notify minutes, to those who exercise the hunts, contesting the failure to pay the annual fee for participation in the ATC (Territorial Hunting Area). Said hunters affirm that article 28 of the law 11 February 1992 n. 157, and art. 23 of the Regional Law n.27 of 13/08/1998, clearly and unequivocally define the powers and duties of the hunting surveillance officers, which do not provide for the demonstration by the hunters that the fee has been paid annual participation in their ATC ".
"Reinforced concept - continues Marmo - by the Criminal Court of Cassation with sentence no. 6454 of 2/2/2006, which has established that the skills of the hunting surveillance officers are limited to the subjects - precisely - “hunting” and not of any other tenor. This ruling unequivocally gave reason in particular to the battle that Giuseppe Testone has been carrying out for many years, a monopoly hunter with a hunting license since 1951, who has always rejected the request to pay, in the same region in which he pays the concession fee. regional, an additional sum of € 42,00 in favor of the "ATC" management committees, also because it is the same Regional Law, n.27 of 13/8/1998, which automatically allocates 20% of the proceeds of the regional tax to said Bodies ".
"The aforementioned sentence definitively states - writes Marmo - which are the documents that the hunter must possess in order to carry out the hunting exercise and which, therefore, must be exhibited at the time of a possible control by the hunting surveillance officers. . Testone has always maintained that the regional concession tax (provided for by art. 23 of law no. 157 of 11/02/1992) and the hunting license authorize hunting throughout the national territory. The Puglia Region documents and adjusts the behavior of its successors in title ".
Below is the sentence of the Criminal Court of Cassation n.6454 dated 21 February 2006:
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COURT OF CASSATION Criminal, Sec. III, 21/2/2006 (Cc 2/2/2006), Sentence n. 6454
(Pres. Postiglione - Est. Teresi - Ric. Lancellotti - canceled without postponement order of the Court of Salerno dated 26.09.2005)
COUNCIL CHAMBER OF 2/2/2006
JUDGMENT No. 174
GENERAL REGISTER No. 43773/2005
Composed by Messrs.:
Dr. Amedeo Postiglione
1.Dr. Franco Mancini
2.Dr. Alfredo Teresi
3.Dr. Alfredo Maria Lombardi
4.Dr. Amedeo Franco
said the following
JUDGMENT
on the appeal lodged by the Public Prosecutor at the Court of Salerno against the order of the Court of Salerno of 26.09.2005 which canceled the seizure validation decree issued by the Public Prosecutor on 6.09.2005 and ordered the restitution in favor of Lancellotti Giovanni , under investigation of the crime referred to in art. 2, paragraph 1 letter. ce 30 paragraph 1 lett. b law n. 157/1.992, the 12-gauge shotgun, Beretta brand and a cartridge case with 20 12-gauge cartridges;
Having regard to the documents, the denounced order and the appeal;
Having heard the report of the Director Dr. Alfredo Teresi;
Heard the PM in the person of the PG, dr. Francesco Salzano, who asked for the cancellation with postponement of the order;
observes
By order dated 26.09.2005, the Salerno Review Court annulled the seizure validation decree issued by the Public Prosecutor on 6.09.2005 and ordered the restitution in favor of Lancellotti Giovanni, who had been investigated for the crime referred to in art. 2, paragraph 1 letter. ce 30 paragraph 1 lett. b law n. 157/1992, the 12-gauge shotgun, and a cartridge belt with 20 cartridges seized from the same.
The Court held that the kidnapping had been illegitimately carried out by volunteer WWF guards to whom law no. 157/1992 does not recognize the relative power.
The PM filed an appeal in cassation denouncing the violation of the law; lack and manifest illogic and contradictory reasoning for having the Court ruled out that WWF agents could proceed with seizure in hunting matters and requesting the annulment of the order.
The appeal is based on the same basis as the jurisprudence of this Court according to which the voluntary guards of the environmental protection associations recognized by the Ministry of the Environment (such as the WWF) have the qualification of judicial police officers
- “because the law 11 February 1992 n. 157 expressly attributes to them the task of hunting surveillance on the "application of this law" including art. 30 relating to criminal sanctions (see art. 27 letter D);
- because Article 28 of the same law in defining the powers and duties of the hunting surveillance officers includes both the inspection power (the request to exhibit the license to carry the rifle for hunting use; the request to exhibit the card issued by the Region; request for the insurance mark), both the power to control the killed or captured fauna (see art. 28, 1st paragraph) and the power of assessment (drafting of the report) (art. 28, 5th paragraph);
- because the qualification of judicial police in favor of voluntary guards did not require a specific mention, as these subjects are competent only for hunting matters, while it appeared necessary for other subjects also mentioned in the law having general competence;
- because in the content of art. 55 and 57 cpp "taking notice of crimes" is logically linked in a functional way to the duty of "preventing them from being brought to further consequences" and this seems to also apply to hunting guards, naturally only within the limits of the service they are intended for. , also for an essential operational need in the specific matter, in order to ensure the evidence, avoid its dispersion and prevent the anti-legal action from continuing (in this sense the note 28.3.1994, prot. 1467-44 / 6 UL is also expressed of the Ministry of Justice) "(Cassation Section III n. 1151/1998 RV. 211205).
It follows that the seizure of the rifle and cartridges was legitimately carried out in the exercise of the powers assigned to the voluntary guards of the environmental protection associations recognized by the Ministry of the Environment in hunting matters.
The ordinance must be canceled without postponement, so that the canceled provision is revived
PQM
The Court cancels the contested order without referral.
So decided in the Council Chamber in Rome on 2.02.2006
MAXIMUM
Full sentence
1) Hunting - Voluntary guards - Environmental associations recognized by the Ministry of the Environment - Functions - Seizure of a rifle and ammunition - Legitimacy - Judicial police. The seizure of a rifle and ammunition by voluntary guards of environmental protection associations recognized by the Ministry of the Environment in hunting matters (such as WWF) is legitimate as they have the same qualifications as judicial police officers (Pres. Postiglione - Est. Teresi - Ric. Lancellotti - cancels without postponement order of the Court of Salerno of 26.09.2005). COURT OF CASSATION Criminal, Sec. III, 21/2/2006 (Ud 2/2/2006), Sentence n. 6454.
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(May 16, 2013)
Puglia region