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DETROIT NEWS (Michigan) 07 December 04 Canton owner of 50 snakes recovers from poison bite, faces charges
Canton Township, Mich. (AP): A suburban Detroit man will have to give up his dozens of venomous snakes, including the deadly nine-foot pit viper whose bite sent him to the hospital, and may face a fine as well, police say.
Rudolph Hatfield, 51, of Wayne County's Canton Township is recovering at Detroit Receiving Hospital after one of his more than 50 snakes bit him Saturday. Hatfield was upgraded from serious to good condition Monday.
On Sunday, Detroit Zoo staffers removed the Bushmaster viper from the home and quarantined it at the zoo, said zoo spokesman Scott Carter. The snake is indigenous to the rain forests of South America.
Sgt. Rick Pomorski said the man violated a Canton ordinance that bans the personal possession of venomous reptiles in a home. It carries a $500 fine.
Pomorski said the man is married and has children, but his wife and family only live in the home part time. He said the man ordered the Bushmaster by mail. The snakes can cost from $1,000 to $1,500.
Police are negotiating with a reptile zoo to take the other snakes. Until then, the snakes are in their tanks and remain locked in the home under police surveillance, Pomorski told the Detroit Free Press.
"Obviously, they need to remove (the snakes) and they need to do a search in every area that snakes may be able to hide out," neighbor Harvey Pack told The Detroit News.
Canton owner of 50 snakes recovers from poison bite, faces charges

CANTON OBSERVER (Michigan) 09 December 04 Police order man to remove snakes (Jack Gladden)
A Canton man who has more than 50 poisonous snakes and some tarantulas in his home on Brighton Lane in the southwest portion of the township has promised police he'll have them out of his house by 7 p.m. Friday.
The existence of the snakes came to light after their owner, Rudolph Hatfield, 51, was bitten by his pet 9-foot-long bushmaster, while he was attempting to clean its cage on Dec. 4.
He was on his way to his daughter's house for help when he lost control of his car and went into a ditch. When police came upon the scene and were told what had happened, Hatfield was taken to St. Mary Mercy Hospital in Livonia, where officials contacted the Detroit Zoo for an antidote to the venom.
He was later transferred to Detroit Receiving Hospital where he was still receiving care on Wednesday.
When he told hospital officials about his other snakes, they notified Canton Police who entered the house with a search warrant on Sunday accompanied by a Detroit Zoo official.
"When the police got there and saw what they were dealing with, they called the fire department for assistance," said Canton Fire Marshal Frank Barrett. "Not that we knew how to deal with it either."
Nevertheless, they managed to capture the bushmaster and send it to the Detroit Zoo for safekeeping. The other snakes were kept in their cages and secured in their rooms.
"The guy's lucky to be alive," Barrett said. "He's lucky the Detroit Zoo had the antidote to the venom. The bushmaster is one of the most venomous snakes in the world."
Actually, according to various Internet sites, the bushmaster, which is native to Central and South America, is not the most venomous snake, but, because of its size and the size of its fangs, it injects a large amount of venom when it bites.
The Australian Taipan snake is generally considered to be the world's deadliest, with a bite that is reportedly 50 times more toxic than a cobra's.
And, according to Canton Police Sgt. Rick Pomorski, Hatfield has five of them in cages in an upstairs bedroom, along with many other varieties.
As for the bushmaster, he's not part of the family anymore.
"We entered into an agreement with him where he will surrender his right to the snake," Pomorski said. "It's at the zoo now. His request was that if the zoo wants it, please keep it for exhibit. Otherwise it will be euthanized."
Pomorski said the police wanted Hatfield to relinquish ownership of all his snakes.
"He didn't want to do that," he said. "He said he'd have them out of his house by Friday at 7 p.m."
Hatfield has been issued a civil citation by the township for violation of a township ordinance which makes it unlawful to possess certain animals, including "poisonous reptiles, spiders and insects."
A court hearing has been scheduled for next week in 35th District Court in Plymouth.
"If the snakes are not disposed of by then," Pomorski said, "we will petition the court and ask for a court order to dispose of them."
Even if the snakes are gone, the hearing will be held anyway because the township will seek restitution for costs incurred in the incident, as well as the disposition of the snakes if necessary.
Pomorski said collecting venomous snakes was apparently a hobby Hatfield had pursued for years.
"There seems to be a large interest among a number of people regarding snakes," he said. "There's a following of people. You get to know them, you network, you get them off the Internet."
He said his department has received several telephone calls from people who want to either take the snakes or assist the police in getting them out of the house.
"Apparently a lot of people like snakes," he said.
Police order man to remove snakes

WDIV (Detroit, Michigan) 15 December 04 Canton Man Will Pay Fine After Snake Bite
Canton Township, Mich: A Canton Township man who kept more than 50 snakes in his Detroit-area home pleaded guilty to violating a township ordinance outlawing the possession of venomous reptiles.
Rudolph Hatfield was ordered Tuesday to pay $500 -- as well as court costs and fees the police incurred during the investigation.
One of Hatfield's venomous snakes bit him last week, sending him to Detroit Receiving Hospital. Canton Township police soon learned Hatfield had more than 50 snakes in his home.
Hatfield has removed the venomous snakes and is removing the non-venomous ones.
Canton Man Will Pay Fine After Snake Bite