College of the Florida Keys said NO to humane gate for trapped Key Deer
- Staci-lee Sherwood
- 1 day ago
- 8 min read
Updated: 24 minutes ago
By Staci-lee Sherwood
At least since March 2026 four endangered Key Deer have been trapped by a closed fence surrounding the now defunct prison on Big Pine Key. One of the deer, a doe, has since given birth to a now 8 week old fawn. There is much concern there isn’t enough variety of vegetation for optimal health especially for the small deer that can’t reach the branches. Of particular concern is for the doe, without proper nourishment she can’t produce enough milk for optimal health for her fawn to survive as he or she is too young to eat solid food. Fawns aren’t weaned until at least three months so there is urgency to freeing this fawn who has at least another month of nursing to go.
After Hurricane IRMA made landfall in September 2017 the fence had been partially destroyed giving the deer even more free access to forage and drink from the critical water source. The parcel was leased to The College of the Florida Keys in 2021 by the state. Years later the college put a new fence and now we have trapped deer inside.
One could say the deer are imprisoned but have committed no crime.
Of note the veterinarian, Douglas Mader, who the refuge relies on as an expert, is now used by the board. On his Facebook page he describes himself as a tropical vet pictured mostly with reptiles. He’s known locally as a sea turtle vet who also does cats and dogs. A special certification for large mammals is required to be able to give a legitimate assessment of the Key Deer. Mader was recently quoted as saying to the KeysNews “The animals seem to be stable. When we watched them, they did not seem stressed. They were acting like normal deer.”
Despite a few observations one must question the accuracy of his claim. It’s well known and documented that captive animals do NOT behave the same as wild ones. Even under the best of circumstances herd animals will suffer undue stress from being separated from their family with whom they have long term close bonds. To say the deer might be better off captive brings into question his actual knowledge of their behavior. Captivity of any kind, regardless of how the captivity took place i.e. by accident, is never acceptable. Perhaps Mader should stay retired and let more qualified veterinarians take over
One can clearly see the captive deer is thin and bony she doesn’t look healthy compared to the free deer on the right. Photo credit Valerie Preziosi.
Where the Board of Trustees stands
During the July monthly Board of Trustees meeting the ongoing crisis of trapped endangered Key Deer was discussed. Two trustees were keen on helping the deer finally get out of ‘prison’ but others were opposed. Several trustees, Downer, Batty and Dulcey questioned the school’s liability if there were trespassers. It was brought up that zero confirmed trespassing has occurred since 2017 and honestly anyone can jump the fence. If liability were truly the issue at hand they would have installed a much taller fence and more security cameras. Actions tell the truth, this seems like a false flag intended to stall any effort to save the deer.
Later in the discussion it was insinuated the college had no authority and had to defer to USFWS. All those who lease or own property are obligated to release a protected species trapped on their property. The four trustees who are attorneys would know that. They have blocked access for the deer to exit the property and in doing so are the sole cause of harm. During public comment one of the points I stated “You ALL have a legal obligation to NOT violate the ENDANGERED SPECIES ACT SECTION 9 which by denying these trapped deer freedom absolutely falls within the purview of the intent of this law whereby YOU personally as representatives of the College are responsible for their harm. You CANNOT pass the buck it stops with you.” None of the attorneys said anything because they all know they’re responsible. Explaining the law to lawyers…..seemed a bit ridiculous.
By knowingly blocking the deer from leaving they’re essentially holding protected wildlife captive without having the legal permit to hold wildlife captive. This could be a legal entanglement for the board and college.
Here is a sign showing the property solely belongs to The College of the Florida Keys and therefore whatever happens to the deer ON their property does fall to them.
The use of wildlife corridors was brought up. The board had been misled by the USFWS ‘expert’ who claimed the deer wouldn’t use the gate or a corridor because they weren’t conditioned to. That’s a bold faced lie. There are hundreds of wildlife corridors throughout the country and dozens in Florida. Panthers, Bears, Alligators and Deer ALL use them without ever being conditioned. That point was cleared up because a board should never make a decision based on false information regardless of where it comes from.
The Key Deer issue was not listed on the agenda leaving residents unaware there was a chance to speak directly to the board. Often this is a tactic used to bypass public participation. The college is a public school that receives money from the government. The few who did attend spoke passionately about the deer crisis to no avail. Phil Ehr, who is running for the Congressional seat that represents the Keys, spoke in support of the deer. He also showed up at a protest to bring awareness of the issue. It’s rare to see anyone at protest these days let alone a politician. After nearly an hour of back and forth between several trustees a motion to install the ‘freedom gate’ failed.
It’s an epic failure not just by the board and the college President but for the community that love and respect the deer. Public comment only took place after the motion was voted on. Many question the legality of that under Florida Sunshine law. It could be a public relations nightmare because sentiment of anger and distrust for the college officials is growing. Of the seven board members 6 were appointed this year by pro developer lame duck Gov. Desantis. They are:
Trustee Peter Batty from Key West, President and proprietor of United Atlantic Insurance Group. Division of Election records shows his most frequent recipient of donations was Realtors PAC. If someone donates a lot to the same group that tells you what their agenda and priority is. As the Keys explode with development this looks like Batty is for development and not conservation. Silent through most of the meeting he only spoke up to question liability of the gate after that had already been addressed.
Trustee Michael Downer from Key West is an attorney. One might wonder how he’s not familiar with federal law when the school has been violating it since March 2026. He was the most vocal opponent of installing the gate and appeared to use the liability of the school as a ruse to obstruct any progress. It worked. Several subtle comments could be heard how his name, Downer, described him and his attitude toward the deer. At times he sat sideways appearing to block out of view the residents there to speak for the deer.
Trustee Andrew Dulcey from Key West and an attorney. Appointed in June 2026
Trustee Edward Kertis also from Key West is a retired Navy diver with a master’s degree in environmental engineering. Being the dive master for the college one would think he would be the most likely to understand and appreciate wildlife and the need for conservation. Not so according to his denial to pass the humane gate motion.
Trustee Robert Broton from Key Largo, holds a master’s degree in electrical engineering . During the meeting he suggested down the road the property could be used for environmental studies by creating an environmental educational center. Broton said ‘instead of viewing wildlife as an obstacle we could use it as a classroom.’ I applaud this idea and his willingness to help the deer currently trapped and preserve the land for something of lasting value. After the meeting he told me “eventually we’ll win.” Let’s hope the deer are still alive by then.
Trustee Susan Raffanello previously served as a member of the Village of Islamorada Land Planning Agency. She’s an attorney and partner with law firm Coffey Burlington. For those not familiar with government agencies the land planning agencies are more about planning to develop land and not planning to preserve land. I met her walking up the stairs to the meeting. I said there’s a problem with the deer being trapped and she said “so I hear”. She failed to vote for the motion for the humane gate.
Trustee Chair Alexadria Suarez is a former prosecutor for Monroe County, FL. Only she and Broton voted to pass the motion to install the humane gate. Despite being Chair, two people can’t out vote five. We talked briefly after the meeting and she said she “felt she failed”.
Also in attendance was newly appointed President Brittany Snyder. She did spend several hours with Valerie Preziosi, founder of the nonprofit Save Our Key Deer last week at the prison parcel. That was after she struck down the proposal by Preziosi for the humane gate just days before at an emergency meeting held about the deer. She also failed to support the idea at the board meeting the following week when that motion failed to be approved. Snyder strikes me as someone who went out with Preziosi as a means to tap down all the bad press they’re getting. The type of person who smiles for the cameras then stabs you, or the deer, in the back. She has the opportunity to prove me wrong.
Herd life means family life. The 4 trapped deer have been denied their natural life which these deer enjoy.
A concerned doe checks on the captive fawn. Photo credit Valerie Preziosi.
Fawns bond with their mothers at birth and nurse for about 4 months.
Failure by USFWS & FWC
Repeated attempts by the so called experts at the federal US Fish Wildlife Service (USFWS) have failed miserably. Perhaps the agency is more concerned with padding their own ‘nonprofit’, the National Fish Wildlife Foundation, than doing real conservation work. At one point these biologists, who should know about deer behavior, tried to sweep them out of the area using brooms causing undue stress and possible harm.
This agency has become little more than a hunting group despite their glossy pronouncements on their government website. Don’t be fooled. This is NOT the agency that Hank Fisher worked for in the 1990s when they finally restored Grey Wolves to Yellowstone National Park. I met Fisher in 1999 in Yellowstone as we observed the Druid Wolf pack. I’m sure he would be disgusted by what they agency has devolved into. Their utter lack of action and urgency for an endangered species speaks volumes no PR spin can cover up.
The state agency Florida Fish Wildlife Conservation (FWC) has their law enforcement mostly spending time working with ICE. Their biologists spend much of their time lying to the public and putting out trail cameras with hunters claiming it’s for conservation. I spent over twelve years working with them and know personally how deceiving they are which has been documented.
Key Deer eat a variety of food and need several sources of clean fresh water. The old prison property fails to provide adequate food and if the water ever dries up they’d be screwed.
This fawn is free. The trapped fawn of 6 weeks and still nursing is a travesty. The college should be embarrassed by their callous attitude and shameful lack of action. It’s unlikely the trapped fawn is getting enough food to survive.
The humane solution
As proposed by Save The Key Deer they would install, pay for and monitor the humane ‘freedom’ gate so the trapped deer could get out. Being trapped on the property isn’t just about limited food and water. It denies many of the things that make a wild deer a wild deer. They are blocked from their herd, their family and blocked from roaming freely as they have always done. Think how you would feel in that situation. Nothing the government has tried has worked nor will it because quite frankly they couldn’t care less. The humane gate IS the only option.
If you would like to help please contact the following
Please email the trustees ask they either remove the fence entirely or install the humane gate proposed by Save Our Key Deer -