THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, May 4, 1995 TAG: 9505040420
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY SCOTT HARPER, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: VIRGINIA BEACH LENGTH: Medium: 79 lines
Virginia's director of conservation and recreation last week stopped a caravan of state officials driving in False Cape State Park so he could shoot two wild pigs with his handgun.
H. Kirby Burch, appointed last June by Gov. George F. Allen, explained through a spokesman Wednesday that he was carrying his own gun in hope of bagging a big pig for a Virginia National Guard barbecue next week.
Burch, an avid hunter, did not want taxpayers or his own employees to pay for meat for the event, spokesman Gary Waugh said. Burch killed two pigs at the Virginia Beach park after he deemed the first one too small to accommodate the feast, Waugh added.
``This was not a situation where the pig population had gotten out of hand at the park or anything,'' Waugh said. ``It was for the barbecue; it was a planned kill.''
State personnel rules bar employees from carrying firearms or weapons on state time, according to the Virginia secretary of administration's office in Richmond. A violation can lead to termination.
Waugh responded that his boss was driving his own car, that the gun was licensed and that Burch was headed to a meeting and dinner at False Cape with state park managers and other department staff.
``We see no legal problem here,'' Waugh said.
Burch's appointment last summer was criticized by conservation groups, who said he lacks experience in wildlife and natural resources protection. Burch, an active outdoorsman, previously worked as a management analyst for the Virginia Employment Commission.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service is looking into a complaint that Burch actually killed the pigs inside Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge, which is connected to False Cape by narrow dirt roads and swamp at the southern tip of Virginia Beach.
The federal refuge allows pig hunting for one week in October to control their animals' numbers, but only with a permit, said service spokesman Spence Conley.
The penalty for illegal hunting on a wildlife refuge ranges from fines of between $5,000 and $100,000 and jail terms from six months to a year, according to federal authorities.
``We got an anonymous call, which is under investigation by the refuge and law enforcement personnel,'' Conley said Wednesday. ``That's all I can say.''
Waugh and several state park officials who witnessed the shooting said the incident took place well inside False Cape State Park.
The state schedules public pig hunts at False Cape to control the population, and park rangers can kill pigs if their numbers begin to get out of hand, officials said.
The pigs are leftovers from old farms that once dotted the Atlantic coast where the park and refuge now stand. They are largely docile and can grow to upwards of 200 pounds. But they also cause problems with their rooting for food and by tearing up habitat for birds and waterfowl that count on the protected area for rest and shelter.
Burch came to False Cape from Richmond last Wednesday as part of a three-day conference in Virginia Beach for state park managers. He was leading a caravan of managers in state vehicles to the park for a meeting and dinner that night.
Some managers who saw the shooting remember seeing Burch's car stopped in the road and hearing shots. They were not sure what was happening, but were told later the commotion was Burch killing two pigs for the National Guard picnic.
``I heard the gun shots and was just wondering, `What is going on?' '' said Brian Heft, manager of Smith Mountain Lake State Park in western Virginia, who was riding in a van directly behind Burch. ``But I understand they have a problem with pigs down there and have organized hunts and stuff.''
Later, after the meeting, park managers were told that a team would be going back to collect and dress the pigs for the upcoming barbecue. Waugh said the carcasses remain at False Cape.
``It's unfortunate that some of the managers were surprised by this,'' Waugh said. ``It's not like we said in advance, `OK, the director will now kill two pigs.' But it was not done recklessly. No one was in danger. The director didn't get out of his car and just start shooting.'' by CNB