Donald Trump Jr. Accused Of Killing Protected Bird During Illegal Hunt
Donald Trump Jr. has been accused of killing a protected duck while on a hunt in Italy that may not have even been legal to begin with.
Italian officials began speaking out about the incident Tuesday after obtaining hunting footage produced for an outdoor lifestyle brand Trump co-founded that was taken at the Venice Lagoon.
'This is actually a rather uncommon duck for the area. Not even sure what it is in English, but incredible shoot,' he can be heard saying in the video as he singles out a vibrant orange bird among the several he shot down.
Speaking with the Italian press, Andrea Zanoni, a regional councillor in Italy's Veneto region, identified the bird as the 'protected' ruddy shelduck.
'It is a species protected throughout Europe by the EU Birds Directive and by Italian law, which criminalizes its killing and possession,' Zanoni said, as translated into English.
There's also no possibility that Trump was legally permitted to hunt in Italy, Zanoni added.
'Like any foreigner, in Italy he was not allowed to hunt by law,' Zanoni said. 'In fact, in our country, only residents of one of the Italian regions can hunt. You need a hunting license issued by the police headquarters, but above all you need a hunting license issued only and exclusively to residents of one of the Italian regions ― a mandatory document where you can note the date, place of hunting and quantity of animals killed.'
Zanoni wouldn't tell The New York Times how he acquired the footage, which has been reposted by The Guardian. Field Ethos, the lifestyle brand co-founded by Trump, shared a since-deleted trailer for the lagoon footage on Dec. 31, but it does not include scenes of him shooting the ruddy shelduck. It's unclear when the footage was filmed.
Zanoni shared on social media that he has reported the incident to the Venice police in charge of wildlife.
Luana Zanella, a lawmaker in Italy's parliament, echoed the outrage.
'It is morally despicable,' she told the Times. 'And it's a crime.'
Trump is no stranger to hunting scandals. In 2019, a hunting trip he took to Mongolia to kill endangered sheep was estimated to cost American taxpayers around $75,000 in U.S. Secret Service costs ― about $60,000 more than his father's first administration had previously disclosed. Other photos surfaced during that administration that showed Donald Trump's eldest son holding a dead cheetah and a bloody, detached tail of an elephant.
During his first term, Donald Trump also reneged on his promise to uphold a ban on elephant trophy imports from Zimbabwe and Zambia.
Donald Trump Jr. did not immediately respond to requests for comment sent to him through the Trump Organization.
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The Tribune's Quotes of the Week quiz for June 7
Happy June, quotes readers! It was a tense and smoggy week in Chicago. Immigration advocates were alerted Wednesday of people being detained at a U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement office on the Near South Side. Organizers and several aldermen went to protest, and several of them clashed with federal agents. Now, City Council members plan to have a hearing to look into the Chicago Police Department's response to the demonstration. Local immigration advocates also plan to challenge President Donald Trump's travel ban that bars or restricts travelers from 19 countries. The U.S. president spoke with several world leaders this week. After a call with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, Trump said the two countries will continue their trade talks. During their phone call Wednesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin told the president that he would respond to Ukraine's recent drone attacks on a Russian airfield. And in a meeting with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Trump suggested that pursuing peace in eastern Europe is not the best path forward right now. Amidst all of this, the relationship between the president and his former close adviser Elon Musk came to a bitter end as the two exchanged harsh words on social media, and Trump threatened to cut Starlink and SpaceX's government contracts. The Trump administration is also investigating former President Joe Biden's use of an autopen to sign pardons and other documents. Meanwhile in Chicago, Mayor Brandon Johnson pushed aldermen to add a city grocery tax as the long-established state grocery levy expires. A jury found Crosetti Brand guilty of first-degree murder in the slaying of Jayden Perkins, the 11-year-old killed in a brutal 2024 attack as he tried to protect his pregnant mother. And Chicago police determined that Officer Krystal Rivera, a mother and four-year veteran of the force, was mistakenly shot and killed by a fellow cop during a confrontation with an armed suspect Thursday in the Chatham neighborhood. In Springfield, Illinois lawmakers voted to pass the state budget. The $55 billion spending plan was balanced with a combination of spending cuts and an estimated $800 million in tax increases, including hikes on tobacco products, vaping and online sportsbooks. The passage of the budget closed out a legislative session with mixed results for Gov. JB Pritzker. Jerry Reinsdorf is selling the Chicago White Sox — just not this year. On Thursday, the team announced Reinsdorf and billionaire Justin Ishbia reached a long-term investment agreement for Ishbia to obtain a controlling interest in the team by 2029 at the earliest. In other sports news, the Chicago Fire are privately financing a $650 million soccer stadium at The 78, the Chicago Sports Network is finally broadcasting on Comcast and the Chicago Sky are taking on the Indiana Fever this weekend in the first professional women's basketball game played at the United Center. But fans hoping to catch another matchup between Angel Reese and Caitlin Clark will have to wait: The 2024 WNBA rookie of the year is out for a quadriceps strain. Though the forecast looks nice, you may consider spending some time indoors this weekend. Smoke from Canadian wildfires is blanketing Chicago, with the city's air quality at times ranked the worst in the U.S. That's it for the news! Test your knowledge of who said what with the Tribune's Quotes of the Week quiz from June 1 to 7. Missed last week? You can find it here or check out our past editions of Quotes of the Week.
