Fight over US wolf protections heads to federal courtroom

U.S. government attorneys are set to appear before a federal judge to defend a decision from the waning days of the Trump administration that lifted protections for gray wolves across most of the country

BILLINGS, Mont. -- U.S. government attorneys will appear before a federal judge Friday to defend a decision from the waning days of the Trump administration that lifted protections for gray wolves across most of the country, as Republican-led states have sought to drive down wolf numbers through aggressive hunting and trapping.

Wildlife advocates argue that the state-sponsored hunts could quickly reverse the gray wolf’s recovery over the past several decades in large areas of the West and Midwest.

They want U.S. District Judge Jeffrey White in Oakland, California to put wolves back under the legal shield of the Endangered Species Act, which is meant to protect animals from extinction.

But government attorneys contend that wolves are resilient enough to bounce back even if their numbers drop sharply. There's no need to put them back under federal jurisdiction, U.S. Justice Department attorneys said in court documents filed in advance of the hearing.