Walter Palmer, the man who killed Cecil the lion, returns to his dental practice

[GennGreymane]

http://www.cnn.com/2015/09/08/us/wal...urn/index.html

What will his first day back at work be like?

Will protests greet Walter Palmer, the American dentist vilified worldwide for killing a prized African lion, when he returns to his Bloomington, Minnesota, practice Tuesday?

Or will he slip in with little fanfare?

Palmer's office reopened several weeks ago without him and now he's decided the time is right for him to start back to work.

"I'm a health professional," Palmer told The Associated Press and the Minneapolis Star Tribune in a weekend interview. "I need to get back to my staff and my patients, and they want me back. That's why I'm back."

Police plan to keep an eye on developments at the dental practice, but no officers will be on hand.

"We still have a security camera out in the lot there," Bloomington Police Deputy Chief Mike Hartley told the AP and Star Tribune.

Out of sight
Lion hunter's dentist office reopens, without Dr. Palmer

Lion hunter's dentist office reopens, without Dr. Palmer 01:26
Palmer has kept a low profile during the six weeks since he was identified by British media as the big-game hunter who killed Cecil the lion near Zimbabwe's Hwange National Park. Cecil was killed in early July.

"I've been out of the public eye seeing family and friends," he said, denying he was in hiding.

"This has been especially hard on my wife and my daughter," he told the AP and Star Tribune. "They've been threatened in the social media, and again ... I don't understand that level of humanity to come after people not involved at all."

Opinion: In defense of legal hunting

In the crosshairs
Are Zimbabweans outraged over the killing of Cecil the lion?

Are Zimbabweans outraged over the killing of Cecil the lion? 01:43
To say Cecil's death made the dentist a wanted man is putting it mildly.

Social media groaned under the hashtag #WalterPalmer.

"A poor excuse of a human being," "A killer" and "Satan" were just a few of the Twitter insults hurled in his direction.

Celebrities like model Cara Delevingne, actress Alyssa Milano and TV host Sharon Osbourne -- who have a combined total of 8.39 million followers -- joined in as well.

Opinion: How Cecil outrage misses the point

Killing Cecil
The Zimbabwe Conservation Task Force said in July that Cecil was lured out of the national park and shot with a compound bow.

Beloved animals
8 photos: Beloved animals
"I had no idea that the lion I took was a known, local favorite, was collared and part of a study until the end of the hunt," Palmer said late July in a statement. "I relied on the expertise of my local professional guides to ensure a legal hunt."

In Sunday's interview, Palmer said Cecil's tracking collar could not be seen at night when the hunt took place. It was buried in his mane.

The dentist also said it's not illegal to take a collared lion.

Inside the world of trophy hunting

Inside the world of trophy hunting 01:50
Two Zimbabweans have been charged in the case, and officials in the African nation say they want Palmer extradited to face charges.

The dentist has indicated that he'll cooperate, although he said in a statement that he had yet to be contacted by anyone about the investigation.

In Sunday's interview with the AP and Star Tribune, Palmer was joined by attorney Joe Friedberg, who said he's working as an unpaid consultant to the dentist.

Friedberg said Palmer "doesn't need a lawyer" until either the Zimbabwean or U.S. government makes a legal claim.

"There are no official allegations that he's done anything wrong," Friedberg said.

[Independent voter]

Seems like people have already forgot about poor Cecil.

[GennGreymane]

I made my opinion known in other threads, if it was not a research lion, very few would care.

[drwelfare]

If I was local I'd let him give me a quote

[Trassk]

I made my opinion known in other threads, if it was not a research lion, very few would care.

of course, public outcry to stuff like this is about as meaningful and shocking as throwing firecrackers in a group of gorillas and seeing them rage for ten minutes, before forgetting about it

[Afrospinach]

Last I heard about this Zimbabwe cannot find any law with which to charge him with and therefore they cannot even apply for extradition.

[tj119]

people native to those countries kill endangered species daily, I don't get the fuss over this one killing. Get over it, it's an animal.

[Deleted]

'activists' (hooligans suffering boredom) usually tend to forget about the latest outcry quite quickly

[Deleted]

Like ALL hunters this "man" is nothing but a coward.

Some people fail to realise that it's not just about him killing a famous lion, it's also about rich people thinking they are above the law and can buy their way through life. Hopefully this has hit him where it really hurts - his wallet.

[Malachi256]

people native to those countries kill endangered species daily, I don't get the fuss over this one killing. Get over it, it's an animal.

I'd say most people are upset about all endangered species killings. This particular instance was just a combination of many different heinous events and so it pushed enough buttons to create a critical mass of public reaction.

[Ticj]

Like ALL hunters this "man" is nothing but a coward.

Some people fail to realise that it's not just about him killing a famous lion, it's also about rich people thinking they are above the law and can buy their way through life. Hopefully this has hit him where it really hurts - his wallet.

There is a difference between hunting for food and hunting to kill.

[Flutterguy]

There is a difference between hunting for food and hunting to kill.

Wait.. Are you saying the killing doesn't happen in the food case?

[Nadiru]

Little Shop of Horrors taught me that even bad people can be dentists.

[Ichifails]

Like ALL hunters this "man" is nothing but a coward.

Some people fail to realise that it's not just about him killing a famous lion, it's also about rich people thinking they are above the law and can buy their way through life. Hopefully this has hit him where it really hurts - his wallet.

It's almost like they pay a lot of money in order to hunt. And then that money is invested into being able to sustain the rest of the species because none of you fuckers that love animals would throw 50-100k monthly at them.
Most of the time they use animals that are old, sick or endanger the rest of the population.

If an aggressive male lion eats 10 cubs that's ok. If a hunter pays 100k to kill that Lion resulting into 10 cubs being saved and them having food/medicine/being watched over, that man is a coward. Kk got it.

This is what people like you do because they can't understand logic:

Corey Knowlton is on edge sitting inside a Las Vegas hotel room, surrounded by a private security detail, explaining why he spent $350,000 for the chance to hunt a black rhinoceros in the southern African nation of Namibia.

"If I sound emotional, it's because I have people threatening my kids," Knowlton told CNN. "It's because I have people threatening to kill me right now [that] I'm having to talk to the FBI and have private security to keep my children from being skinned alive and shot at."

Knowlton says the Namibian government has identified a handful of black rhinos that can be hunted. These are animals that are old, no longer capable of breeding and are considered a dangerous threat to other younger animals.

He said the threat to the rhino is from its own kind. "One of the other ear-tagged killer rhinos is going to injure it. And then either lions or hyenas are going to drag it down. It's going to die [in] a horrible manner, slowly."

So Knowlton argues, why not let a hunter pay a massive amount of money to take out a threat to the rest of the species. The Dallas Safari Club says the $350,000 paid by Knowlton will be donated to the Namibian government's black rhino conservation efforts.

"As much as I would love them all to live forever, they are going to die," said Knowlton. "The older males are killing each other, and something has to be done about it."

[Post]

I get he fucked up and he's a shitty person, but I don't think killing a lion should make you unable to ever work again in your life.

[Sforza]

Was he lynched yet by the twitter mobs, other do gooders, SJWs, or other "unreasonable reasonable" and "intolerantly tolerant" people?

[Powerogue]

It'll probably effect his business, with people who care boycotting it. Honestly that's all I thought this case deserved in the first place.

[Lovecrafts]

All this horrible shit going on around the world, and you are obsessed with a dead lion. Such amazing priorities.
I hope all these mouth-breathers leave the guy alone, it was a messed up situation. He didn't go out with the intention of killing this lion, he paid for what he was told/thought was a legal hunt.

[truckboattruck]

he paid a lot of money to take 1 animal
then some jerk off slaps a name on it and you people think it was a pet

it wasnt a pet

[starkey]

Seems like people have already forgot about poor Cecil.

Dead Lion washed up on beach doesn't sound sexy.