By Dave Workman
Editor-in-Chief
Six months after filing a lawsuit against the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW), and one month after petitioning Gov. Bob Ferguson to remove four Fish & Wildlife Commissioners, the Sportsmen’s Alliance has launched a website featuring what it claims is “more evidence of corruption and collusion.”
The Alliance has been in a battle with the agency and commission members for allegedly colluding with animal rights extremist groups, apparently to curtail hunting opportunities in the state. The group’s complaints focus on Commissioners Barbara Baker, Lorna Smith, Melanie Rowland, and John Lehmkuhl.
The website has links to several video presentations with narration by Dr. Todd Adkins, Sportsmen’s Alliance senior vice president.
The four targeted commissioners were appointed by former Gov. Jay Inslee.
As TGM reported in January, the Alliance filed suit in state superior court against WDFW for allegedly withholding public records in violation of Washington’s Public Records Act (PRA). This stems from a PRA request for records dating back to September 2023 and leading up to the Commission’s controversial cancellation of the state’s traditional spring black bear hunt at its November 2023 meeting.
SPORTSMEN’S ALLIANCE SUES WA DEPARTMENT OF FISH & WILDLIFE
In a January announcement, the Alliance explained, “The vote came as a surprise to the Sportsmen’s Alliance and Washington hunters, as the meeting’s agenda gave no indication that a cancellation vote would be considered by the commission.
“Ultimately,” the Alliance said, “spring bear hunting in Washington was canceled without providing sportsmen the opportunity to provide meaningful comments.”
In their most recent announcement, Adkins states, “We now have text messages with four commissioners colluding to meet with Washington Wildlife First, an animal-rights organization dedicated to destroying hunting and fishing in the state.”
The website contains copies of emails and text messages, with the names of certain individuals and some texts redacted. The Alliance asserts in at least one press release that “Violations of open meetings laws are rampant.”
The Sportsmen’s Alliance is an Ohio-based national organization originally founded in 1977 after fighting anti-hunters who were trying to get an anti-trapping ballot measure passed in Ohio. According to their main website, the group was originally called The Wildlife Legislative Fund of America and The Wildlife Conservation Fund of America.
“In 2002,” the website says, “the names were changed to better reflect our organizations’ missions. The Wildlife Legislative Fund of America became the U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance (now Sportsmen’s Alliance) and the Wildlife Conservation Fund of America became the U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance Foundation (now, the Sportsmen’s Alliance Foundation).”
