ANN ARBOR NEWS (Michigan) 08 August 03 Man convicted of killing snake - Another jury finds him guilty of killing protected reptile (Art Aisner)
A Whitmore Lake man charged with killing a snake protected by Michigan law was convicted for the second time Thursday, despite testimony from several new witnesses who said the reptile posed a threat to humans.
After 40 minutes of deliberation, a six-member jury found James Galloway, 48, guilty of killing a protected reptile or amphibian - an Eastern Massasauga rattlesnake. Washtenaw County District Court Judge Richard Conlin fined him $100 and ordered him to pay $100 in restitution to the state.
A different jury convicted Galloway on the same misdemeanor offense in May, but Conlin granted a new trial after the parents of a 3-year-old boy Galloway claimed he tried to protect from the snake came forward upon reading about the verdict in The Ann Arbor News.
Clayton Cowan testified during the daylong trial that his son was running toward Pickerel Lake in the Pinckney Recreation Area last Aug. 9 when Galloway shouted for him stop his child because a rattlesnake was on the pathway. Galloway then used a stick to pin the reptile, which struck at the stick, before he snatched it with both hands, he said.
"It was an aggressive snake, that was my impression, and I felt very thankful to him," Cowan said.
Testimony on what happened next varied depending on which side called the witnesses.
Three prosecution witnesses, including two who did not testify at the first trial because their identities were unknown, said Galloway took the snake toward the water to show his two sons and their friend. Onlookers approached him, and Galloway indicated he was with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and that he'd have to kill the snake because it was dangerous. He then grabbed a shovel and sliced off its head.
Galloway testified that he planned to use the shovel to fling the snake into the woods, but felt threatened after it turned toward him when he lightly tossed it to the ground. He said he disposed of the head and carcass in the woods and popped off the rattle to show his children for educational purposes. A park patron reported the incident to the DNR, which traced Galloway to his home by his license plate number.
Galloway said witnesses became confused over Galloway's statements about his past affiliation with a wildlife rehabilitation group based in Ann Arbor.
Assistant Washtenaw County Prosecutor Jeaneth Kirkpatrick also argued that Scott Fox, a snake expert from the University of Michigan, testified that Eastern Massasaugas are typically demure, even though they are the state's only venomous snake.
Yet three area residents testifying on Galloway's behalf said they encountered aggressive Massasaugas that struck at them, though none said they considered killing the creatures.
Galloway's attorney, Donnelly Hadden, said his client did what any other reasonable person would and was a victim of an overzealous prosecution.
"This is a monstrous miscarriage of justice," he said. "I wish all the money that went into the prosecution of the case had been used to fix potholes."
After the verdict, Galloway said only he and God knows what really happened that day and that he would not appeal.
Cherie Beckhorn, a DNR conservation officer, said both juries sent a message.
"We're not saying someone shouldn't defend themselves, but they believed, as I do, that he intended to kill the snake when he could have let it go," she said.
Man convicted of killing snake