CALIFORNIA IN BRIEF : SAN FRANCISCO : Mountain Lion Protection Upheld

A state Court of Appeal, sharply criticizing Fish and Game officials, refused to lift a 17-year ban in California on the killing of mountain lions for sport. The three-member panel upheld an order by a San Francisco Superior Court judge blocking the proposed hunt until the state Fish and Game Commission more fully analyzes the environmental impact of the plan and gives the public more information on its consequences. The panel said the commission’s environmental analysis was “woefully inadequate.” State officials, the court said, “chose to circulate a document that simply swept the serious criticisms of this project under the rug.” Spokesmen for the commission and the state attorney general’s office declined comment, pending study of the panel’s opinion, but said an appeal to the state Supreme Court will be considered.