Trapper Faces Trespassing Investigation

A fur trapper who killed more than 300 animals in a rural area along the border of Los Angeles and Ventura counties last year is under investigation for trespassing, authorities said Monday.

Steve Clark, a 38-year-old licensed commercial trapper, is being investigated to determine whether he placed traps on the Ahmanson Ranch without written permission from property owner H. F. Ahmanson & Co., state Department of Fish and Game officials said at a meeting with area residents.

Agoura, Calabasas and Thousand Oaks residents had complained to state authorities about reports of trapping on the Jordan Ranch and the Ahmanson Ranch near Cheeseboro Canyon. The Jordan Ranch borders the Cheeseboro Canyon tract of the Santa Monica Mountains Recreation Area on the west; the Ahmanson borders the tract on the east. Trapping on private land is legal with a state license and permission of the property owner.

“No trapping violations have been found,” Roger Reese, local head of enforcement for the fish and game department, told the 65 residents who attended the meeting.

“But, if there is sufficient evidence, the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office will press charges of trespassing,” Reese said.

Trespassing is a misdemeanor and carries a maximum penalty of a $1,000 fine.

The investigation by state fish and game officials will continue for another week, Reese said.

Ahmanson officials have said that Clark did not have permission to trap animals on their property.

Clark, who could not be reached for comment Tuesday, said in an interview earlier this month that he had been told by Hank Heeber III, the manager of the Jordan Ranch--owned by entertainer Bob Hope--that he could set traps on Jordan and Ahmanson property.

Heeber had said earlier that he allowed Clark to trap on the Jordan property because the ranch had lost cattle and sheep to bobcats. Heeber could not be reached for comment Tuesday on Clark’s claim that he was given permission to trap on the Ahmanson property. Heeber is not associated with the Ahmanson property.

Clark has said that he caught 112 coyotes, 60 bobcats and 80 gray foxes on about 5,000 acres near Cheeseboro Canyon. He also said he killed nine raccoons and about 100 skunks.

Local conservationists who attended Monday’s meeting said that trapping in the area could seriously reduce the wild animals. “It’s become a relative wasteland,” said Dave Brown, of Calabasas.

But Tom Paulek, a state fish and game biologist, said the area’s wildlife is not endangered by trappers because the animals reproduce much faster than they are killed.

“Trapping is considered a legitimate use of wildlife,” he said.