Six people who protested last year’s bear hunt in New Jersey were found guilty of obstruction in a municipal court. During the final day of the hunt they jumped a police barricade at Wawayanda State Park. The defendants claimed the fence was built arbitrarily, therefore compromising their rights to freedom of speech. The judge disagreed, and handed them each a $350 fine, plus court costs.

During the trial, the prosecutor asked that each defendant be given the full fine of $1000. However, the judge sympathized with the actions of the protestors, telling them that he understood they had acted out of a sense of moral outrage.