Re: "Cleaning up the Burke Museum"

[Phil Bigelow <bigelowp@juno.com>]

If a prosecution is sought (not a given, BTW), it will make the second
high-profile case within the last couple years.  The first was of a
commercial collector (remember the _Falcarius  utahensis_ mining
operation in Utah?), and now this one, of a professional paleontologist
flagrantly ignoring the permitting process.

I also note that amateur collectors have not made the police blotter in
recent years.  This is not due to the laws, but rather to the
light-handed, ethical way in which most amateurs collect.

(yeah yeah, I'll take my little agenda back to vrtpaleo)

<pb>


On Wed, 25 Jan 2006 09:05:07 -0700 Michael Schmidt
<dmichaelschmidt@shaw.ca> writes:
> Pretty sad....it will just be very interesting to see whether they 
> send the 
> National Guard after "Prof" Rensberger and prosecute him with the 
> zeal that 
> academics want the authorities to prosecute illegal private 
> collectors with. 
> If I understand the article properly, this man committed (at least) 
> one 
> felony by trading material from a national park, but he also 
> illegally 
> collected material on his digs in Wyoming,.....getting permits for 
> about 
> only 5% of them.
> 
> I wonder how long it will be before he is arrested????  This should 
> be very 
> interesting
> 
> Michael
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: <mkirkaldy@aol.com>
> To: <dinosaur@usc.edu>
> Sent: Wednesday, January 25, 2006 8:00 AM
> Subject: "Cleaning up the Burke Museum"
> 
> 
> > Forwarded from PaleoNet.
> > -Mary
> >
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: argo@u.washington.edu
> > To: paleonet@nhm.ac.uk
> > Sent: Tue, 24 Jan 2006 12:36:59 -0800 (PST)
> > Subject: paleonet Re: Cleaning up the Burke Museum
> >
> > It is with sadness but relief that I can report that the 
> University of 
> > Washington has finally dealt with the long rumored improprieties 
> involving 
> > the Vertebrate Paleontology collection at the University of 
> Washington. I 
> > first alerted the University of perceived problems in 1989, but 
> better 
> > late than never, although the personal cost along the way was 
> high. The 
> > website with the report on the collection and a news article can 
> be found 
> > at:
> >
> > http://www.seattleweekly.com/news/0604/burke.php
> >
> > Professor Peter D Ward
> > Dept of Biology
> > The University of Washington
> > Seattle, 98195
> > 206-543-2962 ( Office ) 
> 
> 
> 


--
"Am I crazy, Jerry?  Am I?  Or, I am SO sane that you just blew your
mind?!" - Kramer