Vic snake handler wins ban appeal
A Victorian snake handler who was banned from performing live shows after letting snakes repeatedly bite his daughter can reapply for his licence.
Raymond Hoser, 52, was stripped of his licence to perform with snakes because he allowed a taipan and death adder to bite his 12-year-old daughter seven times in a show at a Melbourne shopping mall.
The snakes had undergone a procedure to remove their venom glands, but the bites drew blood.
Hoser was also punished for having his snakes too close to the audience without proper barriers.
The Department of Sustainability and Environment (DSE) stripped Mr Hoser of his wildlife demonstrator and handler licence, in a decision that was upheld on appeal in the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT).
But the Victorian Court of Appeal on Friday set aside those 2012 rulings, and will allow Mr Hoser to reapply for his licence.
Justices Robert Redlich and Joseph Santamaria found the VCAT rulings that Mr Hoser had reckless disregard for the public could not be sustained and failed to take account of the effect of the cancellation on his livelihood.
