Indiana Hunting Measure Pits Animal Versus Gun Rights

SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) — Indiana voters will decide next month whether to follow 19 other states in adopting a constitutional amendment to protect the right to hunt and fish.

The measure pits two aggressive lobbies against each other: animal rights activists and the National Rifle Association.

The Humane Society said the proposal is a solution to a problem that doesn't exist because there is no movement to ban hunting and fishing.

National Rifle Association spokeswoman Catherine Mortensen says the organization has been helping lawmakers write the amendments. She says the organization wants to protect those rights before there is an imminent threat.

Hunting and fishing are popular in Indiana, which has large swaths of forest and many lakes. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service estimates Indiana has about 392,000 hunters and about 801,000 anglers.