An Alabama lawmaker on Thursday said he couldn’t vote to support a rule limiting hunting deer with dogs because a group of hunters threatened to burn his home and his timber lands.
Representative Chris Pringle, a Republican who chairs the Alabama Legislative Council, told his fellow council members that the incident occurred in 2019. His remarks came near the end of the Council’s meeting on Thursday, and followed a lengthy debate and public hearing on a proposed new rule that could potentially curtail an issue with hunting dogs being allowed to roam on private or leased property in and around Talladega National Forest.
“Ladies and gentlemen, I’m going to warn you – you do not want to deal with dog hunting days,” Pringle said. “Last time we did this, the dog hunters pulled me aside and told me in no uncertain terms that if I did not vote with them they would burn down my house and they would burn my timber down. That they had all the time in the world to burn my stuff up.
“So, I want you to know what you’re dealing with before you cast this vote. That’s the reason I’m not voting for this regulation, because I cannot jeopardize what I own over dog hunting a deer.”
Pringle’s comments seemed to stun many of the Council members and others gathered at the Statehouse conference room for the meeting.
“I would have to say that I don’t fear man,” Senator Vivian Figures, a Council member, said to Pringle. “But I do try to treat people the way I want to be treated. I was threatened before by the gun owners that I wouldn’t get re-elected, so if that’s what they want to try to do, then bring it on. Just like I said then. But they don’t tell me how to vote. Nobody threatens me to vote one way or the other. I vote with my heart.”
Pringle responded: “Well, you don’t own a place in the country.”
A few moments later, the Council voted unanimously to approve a rule that, if adopted by the advisory board of the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, would impose a one-mile buffer zone around Talladega National Forest and make it illegal for hunting dogs to cross into private lands.
After the vote, Pringle expressed surprise, apparently not realizing that he had voted for the new amended rule.
“I was not aware of that—I thought we were voting on the amendment,” Pringle said. “I want to come out clearly opposed to this rule. I do not want the dog hunters burning my stuff down. I’m going to stand with the people that threatened me.”
He then moved to reconsider the vote.
That suggestion brought dismay from his colleagues and anger from a gallery filled with Talladega-area landowners who had traveled to Montgomery to voice their frustrations over dog hunters ruining their hunting areas by trespassing their dogs. The landowners told of repeated and purposeful infractions by the dog-assisted hunters and also told stories of confrontations that turned, or potentially could have turned, violent.
When Pringle suggested another vote be held, those landowners began to shout. Pringle threatened to have one man removed.
Ultimately, the Council re-voted. The amended rule was passed with only Pringle changing his vote and voting against it.
