White House Petition at https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/extradite-minnesotan-walter-james-palmer-face-justice-zimbabwe

Extradite Walter Palmer of Minnesota to Zimbabwe to face charges of poaching Cecil, the mascot of Hwange National Park, pictured above.

Because he left the United States for the purpose of committing a crime in another country, his passport should be revoked as well. His actions have damaged the reputation of the United States and of law-abiding Americans. The United States currently has an extradition treaty with Zimbabwe, where Palmer may face up to five years in prison if he is convicted. Passport revocation may be done by the U.S. Passport Office under 22 U.S. Code 211a or via Executive Order at Executive Order No. 11295,31 Fed. Reg.10603. Citizens may also write to the Department of State under Code of Federal Regulations 51.65(a) and individually request a review of Palmer's passport. Because this is a high profile case, Palmer's passport should be subject to review by the Director of Passport Legal Affairs. Please follow rules under http://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/USCIS/Laws/Memoranda/2011/April/revocation-us-passport-pm-602-0036.pdf if you plan to request revocation or review individually.

On July 6th, Zimbabwe alleges that Minnesota dentist Walter Palmer willfully targeted and then slowly killed Cecil, a lion who was a popular attraction inside Hwange National Park. Cecil was clearly identified by a collar and protected within the park's borders. Palmer had a legally-issued permit for hunting a lion - outside the park's borders.

Palmer has been positively identified as being among the group that lured Cecil outside the park, and paid his guide $36,000 to do so. This is illegal under Zimbabwean law. Palmer shot the lion with a bow and arrow, but Cecil took 40 hours to die with the arrow in his flank.

All of Palmer's recorded kills are with a bow and arrow, including an illegal kill of a black bear in Wisconsin for which Palmer was convicted of poaching. Palmer has other mentions in his record of suspected poaching, though these have not been proven. Once Cecil was dead, Palmer is identified as having removed the collar in an attempt to cover what he had done. This is illegal under Zimbabwean law.

Currently, Cecil's head and pelt are believed to be in Zimbabwe. If Palmer takes possession of the head and pelt, he will also be guilty of smuggling.

We the undersigned ask that the Palmer case be submitted to review and the necessary actions, including extradition and revocation, be taken to support our allies under Zimbabwean law and protect the reputation of Americans abroad. For this reason we are petitioning United States President Barack Obama, Minnesota Attorney General Lori Swanson, and United States Attorney General Loretta Lynch.