Witnesses for the Defense:

   Witnesses Statements:

   Testimony of Mr. Dennis Wilson:

   I live next door to Mr. Homer Runn and his baseball field is very close to our mutual property line. Just for the record I have nothing against the sport baseball. I just have something against this field. At first, the field wasn't a problem, but now every aspect of it bothers me.

   Frequently until 11 o'clock, people are screaming and cheering for their favorite team. Metal bats smashing into baseballs and cars driving away from the field at night create unreasonable noise. The bright lights cause a problem for my family. They are on late at night, sometimes until 11 o'clock. My little children now have trouble falling asleep because of the light coming through the curtains.

   Occasionally, the kids go into my yard, and trample my flowers to retrieve foul balls. The balls fly farther every day. Once, a ball broke one of my windows.

   Parking has become a huge problem. When I host get-togethers at my house, parking along the street is impossible due to the amount of people at the baseball field. This means my guests must park two blocks down and then walk to my house.

   The amount of garbage created by the field is horrendous. Fans bring their own food and leave it all over the field. The wind picks it up and blows it all over my yard.

   On dry, sunny days the dust is unbearable. The children cannot even play outside because of the constant dust being blown by the wind into their eyes. My whole family suffers. We deserve some fresh air on our property.

   When I walk outside, I am ashamed of my neighborhood.

   Testimony of Police Chief Ralph Wiggam:

   People have been calling Left Field police department to complain about Homer Runn's baseball field. Complaints include lights, noise, garbage, dust, and traffic problems. Many of the callers sound very angry.

   When Mr. Runn leveled his property for the baseball field, the runoff swamped the local farmers' land. The runoff has been ruining the crops that need a regulated amount of water. It's washing away the fertilizer that farmers spent large amounts of time depositing over their crops. In addition, flooding occurs in the streets when there are big storms. Before the baseball field was built, all water from storms would flow into a large ditch. Now, since the land is leveled, the water runs into the streets, rather than the ditch.

   People have been calling our department to complain about these flooded streets. At the station, we have many more important things to tend to; therefore we can't take immediate action towards the field. Mr. Runn's field outweighs the ordinary and must go.

   Testimony of Mr. Homer Runn:

   I have loved baseball my entire life. I love the crisp air and the good old crack of the bat. The only thing I didn't like about the county Little League was the schedule. I believe that the players should play and practice whenever they choose to. The fields were either occupied or locked up, therefore, I decided to build my own field.

   It was designed for the use of my children and myself. It is a leveled section of dirt in the shape of a baseball diamond with a large outfield. Although the end of the field is fairly close to the end of my property, balls do not commonly fly over the fence. I did not put up any bleachers, so the majority of the spectators were parents of the children who played.

   The only lighting is the small floodlights that illuminate the bases and the outfield. They are normal house lights like anyone would put in his or her shrubs to light them up at night. I am present at every game, and make sure that everything is orderly and safe. I do not provide snacks, and I make sure that the correct amount of players plays a game at one time.

   My field is not a nuisance at all. I believe Mr. Wilson just does not enjoy the great American pastime, baseball.

   Testimony of Mrs. Louise V. Slugger:

   My son is constantly playing on Homer's field. He enjoys every minute of the action. If he ever has a second of free time, you can find him on the field. Playing baseball keeps him in shape, and I am sure the situation is similar with the other children.

   In addition to fitness, baseball boosts children's sportsmanship and self-esteem. Before the baseball field was built, my son didn't have any friends. The field has helped him interact with people that share his interests.

   This field provides all these favorable aspects without disturbing most of the neighbors. The majority of my neighbors have been saying how nicely the field has turned out. The children are not only happy, they are exercising on a daily basis. Some people just can't appreciate how much Mr. Runn is doing for his community. His actions certainly don't appear wrong to me.

Created by the following students in Mrs. B. Gallo's Social Studies Seminar class, in alphabetical order:Gregory Epstein, Michael Ferra, Nimrod Grinvald, Tian He, John LaTona, Tami Lieberman, Katya Mamyshev, Megan McClellan, Sidhant Mehra, Daniel Nadel, Tracy Pho, Samantha Recchia, Henry Stankiewicz, Laurissa Yee, Gregory Yen, Geoffrey Yih, Albert Yin and Jennifer Yu.

Deerly Beloved

8th Grade Honorable Mention

   Facts:

   Mr. Buck Hunter is an avid deer hunter who has resided in the town of Peaceforal for his entire life, living in the same house where he grew up. For generations the Hunter men have all been known as great deer hunters and have always hung their dead deer on the same big, strong tree in their front yard before butchering them.

   Recently a development of new homes called Pleasant Valley Estates was constructed in the fields across the street from Mr. Hunter's house. A school bus stop for the children attending the local elementary school is directly across the street from the tree on which Mr. Hunter traditionally hangs his deer. Last year, some of the children in the development became very upset since they could plainly see the gutted deer carcass while waiting for their school bus. Some of the residents of the Pleasant Valley Estates development mentioned to Buck Henry that they thought the sight of the dead deer was offensive.

   This year, Buck Jr. accompanied his father hunting and together they killed five deer during hunting season. This was the first year that Buck Jr. killed a deer and he was proud to have his deer displayed from the tree in the family tradition.

   Buck Hunter contends that he is doing nothing wrong by hanging the deer from the tree on his property. He has been hunting since he was a young boy and it is a family tradition to display their dead deer as trophies. Some of the new neighbors feel differently about the matter. They want the carcasses removed from the view of the bus stop and the development, contending that they constitute a nuisance to the community.

   Issue: Does the hanging of gutted dead deer on one's own property constitute a nuisance to the community, unavoidably interfering with the enjoyment of life and/or property?

   Witnesses for the Plaintiff:

   Witnesses for the Defense:

   Witnesses Statements:

   Testimony of Prissy Dent:

   I am the president of the Pleasant Valley Estates Homeowners' Association. This association consists of residents who live in the new development across the street from Buck Hunter's house. This community has approximately 125 homes with ten more presently under construction. According to the developer these additional ten houses have been especially hard to sell while the deer cadavers are hanging from the tree on Mr. Hunter's front lawn.

   Last year at one of the monthly association meetings, some of the homeowners complained about the hanging gutted deer carcass. On behalf of the association I went to speak to Buck Hunter regarding the offensiveness of his actions and soon the carcass was taken down.

   This year, Mr. Hunter hung five deer from that same tree, and even more people complained at a recent association meeting about the blood on the fur, the huge vacant chest cavity, the shredded flesh, and the ominous glassy eyes. Residents are mortified by the grotesque way the deer are displayed, hung by the neck with a large piece of utility rope. Some of the children believe they are in peril because Mr. Hunter has a gun.

   Other people besides the residents of the new development are also upset. I spoke to Anne M. Alactivist, representative of the local animal activists living in Peaceforal, who explained how the sight of the hanging gutted deer violates her group's beliefs and how abhorrent they found the sight. Herb Avore, a vegetarian, is repulsed at the thought of killing, eating, or displaying helpless and innocent deer. Even people who eat meat explained to me that they are offended since they do not want to be reminded of how their food is hunted and/or butchered.

   All agree that the concept of killing in their peaceful community sets a bad tone. The custom of hanging the deer corpses is offensive and interferes with the enjoyment of life and property in the community.

   Testimony of Roger Parent:

   My name is Roger Parent and I moved to Pleasant Valley Estates with my family from an urban area over one year ago. My wife and I wanted to raise our daughter Suzy in a peaceful, safe, and non-violent neighborhood.

   Last November, Suzy came home from school crying. When I asked why she was upset she told me that as she got off the school bus she saw a dead deer hanging from a tree across the street from the school bus stop. When I investigated her story, I could understand her reaction. The sight of a deer gutted, hung from the neck, and dangling from the tree was a shocking and disgusting sight. The next day I walked Suzy to the bus stop and talked to the bus driver who informed me that many of the children had fearful reactions to the horrible sight.

   I talked to other parents who agreed with me that this practice is upsetting and offensive. We were also concerned that a member of our community was in possession of a gun.

   I spoke to Mr. Hunter about my concerns and the deer was eventually removed from the tree. I thought the matter had been resolved but this November instead of one deer there were five deer hanging in Buck Hunter's front yard! Suzy as well as other children are just as fearful as they were last year.

   This matter interferes with my enjoyment of life as well as the lives of other parents and their children. I would like to be able to come to an agreement with Mr. Hunter but that does not seem possible without the court's intervention.

   Testimony of Buck Hunter:

   I have been living in the town of Peaceforal my whole life. I have been a hunter since I was a child and I am proud of it. My father and grandfather were both very skilled hunters and they taught me all that I know about hunting. I am in the process of teaching my own son how to hunt. As a matter of fact, I took Buck Jr. hunting with me for the first time this year and I am proud to say that one of the deer displayed in the front yard was shot by him.

   I have always hung the deer from that tree. This practice is not new and no other residents of Peaceforal ever complained to me until the new development Pleasant Valley Estates was recently built. Hanging the deer is necessary in order to draw the blood from the carcass. If you didn't do this, the meat would spoil and not be edible. The deer are also a sign of my skill as a hunter.

   The carcasses are hung on my tree on my property. All of my hunting is done legally, according to the rules and regulations of the State Division of Fish, Game, and Wildlife. I am not trying to insult people or scare any children. I need and use the meat from the deer that I hunt.

   There should be no concerns about my possession of a firearm. I have a constitutional right to have a gun. My gun is legally licensed and kept in a securely locked container. I know how to properly handle and store my gun safely since I have taken a gun safety course.

   Testimony of Darren Spector:

   My name is Darren Spector and I am an administrator for the New Jersey Division of Fish, Game, and Wildlife. After I was subpoenaed, I visited Mr. Hunter's house to analyze the situation. He had a valid New Jersey hunting permit under New Jersey Statute 23:3-1c, and all of his deer were properly transported and tagged under New Jersey Statute 23:4-47:1 and 23:3-1c. By hanging the deer from the tree, Mr. Hunter is observing the health precautions involved in using the venison for food.

   In conclusion, the defendant has followed all the necessary laws and precautions according to the state fish, game, and wildlife guidelines.

Created by the following students in Mrs. B. Gallo's Social Studies Seminar class, in alphabetical order:Stephen Alerhand, Tracy Ferra, Adam Hecht, Ruth Ellen Howard, Virginia Hu, Elizabeth Kang, Hyon Suk Kim, Daniel Landau, Gillian Levinson, Joshua Lubchansky, Casey Petenko, Courtney Schwartz, Pin Su and Ravi Verma.