State appeals ruling blocking fenced hunting preserve rules

The Indiana attorney general's office is appealing a court ruling that state wildlife officials overstepped their authority in trying to shut down Indiana’s high-fenced deer-hunting preserves.

The state Court of Appeals ruled last month that because Indiana law doesn’t prohibit high-fenced hunting, the Department of Natural Resources went too far when it tried in 2005 to force closure of the preserves.

The petition Wednesday to the Indiana Supreme Court asks for reinstatement of the DNR’s authority over privately owned wild animals.

Attorney General Greg Zoeller says state legislators should decide whether to legalize the state’s four current high-fenced preserves.

The Indiana House has approved a bill that sets up a licensing process for the preserves where farm-raised deer are hunted. That proposal is pending in the state Senate.