Day: June 16, 2009

Another Georgia Redneck story:

[AJC June 16, 2009] A Dalton family already had a spot picked out for the keepsake black bear they hit on the interstate late Saturday night. “It was going on the wall in the den,” Beth Jewell said. “We already have a hog in the dining room.” The Jewell family of Dalton had hoped to mount this black bear on a wall in the den. But the state Department of Natural Resources took the animal from the family Tuesday night. Bear in mind, it’s not the season to hunt the four-legged mammals, according to a DNR official. Mike Jewell was driving a Ford F-250 truck and pulling a boat when he hit the bear on the way home from Chattanooga. The bear was apparently crossing the interstate, and there was no way to avoid the collision. The Jewels, who were traveling with their 5-year-old daughter, pulled off at a gas station to check the damages on the truck and call police. “I didn’t know if the bear was dead or not,” Mike Jewell said. “And if wasn’t dead, he was gonna be mad.” A state patrol officer arrived, and after making a phone call, told Mike Jewell, an avid hunter, he could keep the animal. “I know the laws,” Jewell said. “I wasn’t going to be caught with a bear without permission to get it.” It took four grown men to load the bear into the Jewells’ truck. Once the bear made it home, it was gutted and filled with ice, Beth Jewell said. Sunday morning, Mike Jewell called his taxidermist. But Jewell was told he’d need a tag in order to have the bear prepped to hang on the wall. Jewell’s next call was to the local DNR office. But he was shocked to learn that he would not be allowed to keep the bear, as he previously had been told. Mike Jewell said he called state Rep. Roger Williams of Dalton, who couldn’t offer any help. “It’s a law that you are not allowed to possess any whole or parts of bear unless it is the designated season of the bear,” said Robin Hill, DNR communications program manager. Bear season will run from Sept. 12 until Dec. 6 this year, Hill said. Some parts of black bears, such as their gall bladders, are in high demand in the Asian market because they are used for medicinal purposes, she said. The bear will now be placed on display in an education facility, Hill said. The site hasn’t been named yet, but hopefully it will be in the northwest Georgia area. The Jewells would really like the bear back. But at the very least, they want to be able to keep track of it. “I feel like we have bragging rights to the bear,” Beth Jewell said. “I want to be able to trace this bear, and see what they do with it.”