(a) Hunting Prohibited. The hunting of animals or birds within the municipality is prohibited. No person shall hunt, kill or attempt to kill an animal by the use of firearms, bow hunting, trapping or any other method, except as follows;
(1) The limited hunting of white-tailed deer by crossbow or long bow may be permitted within the City under the following terms and conditions:
A. The Police Chief or his or her designated representative may, in his or her sole discretion, issue a municipal deer control permit to a qualified archer applicant;
B. As a corollary to and following the issuance by the ODNR of its own deer damage control permit or license to allow only bow-hunting (long bow and crossbow) of white-tailed deer;
C. In areas of not less than five contiguous acres by a qualified archer, on such forms and subject to such rules and regulations as the Chief may prescribe;
D. Hunting shall be conducted from an elevated platform only;
E. Written permission from the properly owner(s) has been obtained;
F. "Qualified archer" shall be defined as an individual having obtained an approval/certification from approved archery proficiency test site, a valid Ohio hunting license, if applicable, and all other state requirements;
G. Compliance with all laws, rules and regulations of the City and state;
H. All applicants shall agree, in writing, to defend and indemnify the City for any negligent acts or damages committed by the applicant;
I. Any other requirements as deemed necessary to preserve and protect the health, safety and welfare of the residents as determined solely by the Chief of Police; and
J. Chief of Police is hereby authorized to promulgate any and all rules and regulations necessary to carry out the provision of this section and all other rules and regulations necessary to insure public health and safety.
(2) The City may utilize firearms-trained personnel to cull white-tailed deer upon property owned or managed by the City or upon private property with permission, provided that:
A. The Chief of Police or his designee has determined that such culling can be safely conducted on such property;
B. Such personnel are employed by or associated with a federal agency, state agency or local law enforcement agency; and
C. Such culling has been approved by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Division of Wildlife.
(b) Trapping. The trapping of animals or birds within the municipality is prohibited by all persons except the animal control officer or wildlife removal and control services that resident's privately contract, providing that the wildlife removal and control service shall only use humane methods/traps, where possible, that are not dangerous to the life or limb of animals to be trapped, or any persons who have any possibility of coming into contact with such traps. Any use of firearms is strictly prohibited. Wildlife remove and control services comply with Section 618.19
and keep current records on animals destroyed and are required to produce said records on demand by any Police Officer, Humane Agent, or animal control officer.
(c) Trapshooting. Live birds or fowl shall not be used as targets in trapshooting.
(d) Poisoning. No poisoned meat or any poisonous substance shall be cast into any of the streets, public places, lots or buildings in the City for the purpose of harming, destroying or killing animals. Nuisance rodent traps are excluded.
(e) No person shall, for the purpose of hindering or preventing the lawful culling of white-tailed deer pursuant to divisions (a)(1) and (a)(2) hereof, knowingly engage in any of the following conduct:
(1) Block, obstruct, impede, or attempt to block, obstruct, or impede a person lawfully engaged in such culling;
(2) Erect a barrier with the intent to deny ingress or egress from the areas where such culling is lawfully being conducted;
(3) Make or attempt to make unauthorized physical contact with or in any way interfere with a person lawfully engaged in such culling; or
(4) Make or attempt to make loud noises or gestures, set out or attempt to set out or attempt to set out animal baits, scents, lures, or human scent, use any other natural or artificial visual, aural, olfactory, or physical stimuli, or engage in or attempt to engage in any other similar action or activity in order to interfere with such culling.
(f) The prohibition set forth in division (a) hereof shall not apply to deer culling population management programs sponsored by and conducted on land owned or managed by the City of Parma Heights or the Cleveland Metropolitan Park District.
(g) The prohibitions set forth in Section 618.13 "Feeding animals and wildlife" of the Parma Heights Codified Ordinances shall not apply to deer culling population management programs conducted by the City of Parma Heights or the Cleveland Metropolitan Park District.
(h) Nothing in this section shall be deemed to prohibit the killing of rats and other undesirable rodents authorized to be killed by the Chief of Police using means for such killing which are also authorized by the Chief.
(i) Whoever violates division (a)(1) of this section is guilty of a misdemeanor of the first degree and shall be subject to the penalty provided in Section 698.02. Whoever violates division (b), (c), (d), or (e) of this section is guilty of a misdemeanor of the fourth degree. If the offender has been previously convicted of violating this section, any subsequent violation of division (b), (c), (d), or (e) of this section is a misdemeanor of the third degree.
(Ord. 2019-3. Passed 2-11-19; Ord. 2022-25. Passed 8-15-22.)