SOUND THE ALARM: TUESDAY IS THE DAY!
Friends,
We need everyone paying attention right now.
This Tuesday, September 1, we will be in Los Angeles Superior Court asking a judge to stop the Catalina Island Conservancy from beginning the killing of Catalina’s mule deer while our lawsuit is pending.
And the situation could not be more urgent.
The Conservancy’s own published operations schedule permits nighttime deer-removal operations beginning September 1. Its September 1 schedule specifically restricts public access through 7:57 a.m. Tuesday morning, and the Conservancy says the operation will involve firearms, air rifles, tranquilizers, feeding stations, nighttime crews and equipment used to locate deer in the dark.
In other words:
They could begin shooting as soon as Tuesday begins — just after midnight tomorrow night — hours before we are in court asking the judge to stop them.
This is no longer theoretical.
White Buffalo personnel are already on Catalina. The warning signs are up. Equipment is in place. Residents have photographed a platform-equipped Conservancy truck near the Airport in the Sky, and the Island is now dotted with signs warning:
“INVASIVE DEER REMOVAL IN PROGRESS”
“FIREARMS IN USE”
“NO HIKING AFTER DARK”
The Conservancy itself says feeding stations were to be installed in mid-August in preparation for September operations.
Tuesday may be our last chance to stop this before deer are killed.
Our attorneys have been working around the clock preparing for this preliminary-injunction hearing. We are asking the Court to preserve the status quo while our challenge to the State’s approval of this project is heard.
If the deer are killed first, there is no way to undo it later.
And we urgently need your help paying for this fight.
Legal work at this stage is extraordinarily expensive. We are fighting both the Catalina Island Conservancy and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. They have seemingly endless institutional resources—an army of lawyers, paid experts, contractors, and a full staff working on this every day. We have you. And right now, we need your help to keep standing toe-to-toe with them.
👉 PLEASE DONATE TODAY
If you’ve been waiting for the moment when your donation could matter most, this is it.
And there is another way to support the Coalition: our Save Catalina Deer merchandise is now available. Wear it, share it, and help make sure people know what is happening on Catalina.
Please also share this update everywhere tonight and tomorrow. Send it to friends. Post it in your groups. Forward it to anyone who has followed this fight.
For nearly three years, tens of thousands of people have told the Conservancy and the State that Catalina’s deer should not be exterminated without meaningful public review and without the science and legality of this project being tested.
On Tuesday, we finally get our chance to ask a judge to stop it.
But the clock is now measured in hours, not months.
Please donate. Please share. And please keep Catalina’s deer in your thoughts Tuesday morning.
We are going to court to fight for them.
— Coalition to Save Catalina Island