KEY POINTS:
Two hunters have escaped criminal convictions after taking a rare kiwi from the wild home with them in what they say was an act of compassion.
Blair David Grice, 21, and Kane William Simmiss, 19, claim they came across the kiwi under attack from a stoat while out hunting in bush on the South Island's West Coast.
They took it home with them, kept it in a box overnight, and when they found no sign of it being injured, released it back into the bush the following day.
After the Department of Conservation (DoC) got wind of the pair's actions, they were charged with breaching the Wildlife Act by possessing "absolutely protected wildlife" without legal authority.
DoC believes the kiwi they took home is one of only about 250 Okarito brown kiwi remaining in the wild.
The pair pleaded guilty to the charges in November, and after completing 50 hours of work each at Christchurch's Willowbank Wildlife Reserve and each making $500 donations to the reserve, they were both discharged without conviction in the Whataroa District Court yesterday.
Their lawyer, Olly Peers, told the Herald it was a fair result for all involved.
"Their intentions were to help the kiwi," Mr Peers said. "They found it being attacked by a stoat, they obviously were concerned for its safety. Thinking it the right thing to do, they took it back home, keeping it in a box.
"They really didn't think there was anything else they could or should have done at the time."
