It is not only a sin to kill a mockingbird, it is also a
crime," proclaimed U.S. District Court Judge Valerie Caproni,
channeling Harper Lee. On August 11, Caproni vacated the
"M-Opinion" authored by Interior Solicitor Daniel
Jorjani. The opinion embodies the administration's attempt to
reverse the Department of the Interior's interpretation of the
Migratory Bird Treaty Act as prohibiting incidental, or
non-purposeful, "take" of migratory birds. The
administration is also expected to release a final rule codifying
this policy this fall. As with so many other regulatory rollbacks,
the fate of these efforts will likely depend on the outcome of the
election.
Under the MBTA, "it shall be unlawful at any time, by any
means or in any manner, to pursue, hunt, take, capture, kill,
attempt to take, capture, or kill, possess . . . any migratory
bird." Interior previously interpreted this language to
prohibit not only intentional take (e.g., hunting and poaching),
but also
