MISSOULA — A Missoula judge ruled on Tuesday that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) violated the Endangered Species Act by removing federal protections for western gray wolves in 2024.
The Court ordered the agency to take another look at whether or not the wolves qualify for Endangered Species Act (ESA) protections.
U.S. District Court Judge Donald W. Molloy found that the USFWS did not use the best available science, which is required by the ESA, to analyze the threats that the wolves face during the decision to remove their protected status.
This decision came after a June hearing, where lawyers from the Fish and Wildlife Service and several environmental groups suing them sparred in a Missoula courtroom.
Judge Molloy ordered the Fish and Wildlife Service to make another decision on the wolves’ fate, reanalyzing the threats with the best available science.
