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Lions, and Tigers, and Bears! Well, just lions

Janet Nguyen Jul 28, 2015

Yelp is good for a couple of things — finding restaurants in your neighborhood, locating the nearest free Wi-Fi. Now, it would seem public shaming could be added to that list.

Walter J. Palmer, a dentist from Bloomington, Minnesota, was on a safari hunt in Zimbabwe when he shot a lion with a bow and arrow, according to the StarTribune. Palmer had paid $54,000 for a professionally guided hunting trip. Unfortunately for both him and his prey, that lion turned out to be the beloved Cecil, a resident of a national park who was part of an Oxford University research project.

As our colleagues at Minnesota Public Radio reported, Palmer said he had no idea of the lion’s importance in a written statement released Tuesday. His guides allegedly lured Cecil out of the park, and then removed his collar.

In the statement according to MPR, Palmer also apologized for the killing, writing “…I deeply regret that my pursuit of an activity I love and practice responsibly and legally resulted in the taking of this lion.”  

But that hasn’t halted the vitriol of the internet, with Yelp users taking to Palmer’s dentistry page to voice their frustrations. 

You should pay for what you have done, and you should financially pay to support Lion Conservation!” says user Charmie P. in one review. 

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