SF vintage clothier gets probation for selling items made from endangered species

Cicely Hansen, 68, walks with her attorney Bill Fazio outside court at the San Francisco Hall of Justice on Monday. Hansen pleaded guilty to two counts of possession for sale of an endangered species after fish and wildlife agents raided her Haight Street vintage clothing boutique last year. less Cicely Hansen, 68, walks with her attorney Bill Fazio outside court at the San Francisco Hall of Justice on Monday. Hansen pleaded guilty to two counts of possession for sale of an endangered species after fish ... more Photo: Evan Sernoffsky, The Chronicle / / Photo: Evan Sernoffsky, The Chronicle / / Image 1 of / 9 Caption Close SF vintage clothier gets probation for selling items made from endangered species 1 / 9 Back to Gallery

The owner of a vintage-clothing boutique on San Francisco’s Haight Street copped to misdemeanor charges Monday that she sold clothes made from the fur of cheetahs, leopards and other protected species.

Dressed in a yellow 1960s dress, an overcoat and a matching chicken feather hat, Cicely Hansen, owner of Decades of Fashion, pleaded no contest to two counts of possession for sale of a product made from endangered species. Superior Court Judge Tracie Brown sentenced her to three years of probation, 500 hours of community service and penalties totaling $3,599.

The 68-year-old business owner and fashion maven saw her store raided in February 2016 by the state Department of Fish and Wildlife, which reported seizing more than 150 items, including those made from sea turtles, ocelots, jaguars, seals, pythons and snow leopards after being tipped off by a shop employee.

Though she pleaded no contest in a deal with prosecutors, Hansen defended her actions, saying all of the seized items were vintage, some more than 100 years old, and that she never dealt in new furs or imported products from overseas.

“We are in a recycling mecca,” she said outside court. “Why would we fill up a landfill with a 100-year-old leopard coat?”

Hansen was initially charged with nine misdemeanor counts of illegal possession for sale of an endangered species and surrendered in March 2016 to the Sheriff’s Department.

The clothier and local personality, known for the elaborate and precise vintage outfits she wears to balls and festivals, has maintained that she doesn’t condone poaching and loves animals.

“If anything, this is just ignorance of a change in the law and unintentional,” she said. “It’s not like I’m a poacher. I have no interest in newer pieces. I have no interest in importing fur from China. I don’t like the way the animals are killed or treated.”

She said agents seized pieces in her personal collection that were never intended to be sold, after a “disgruntled employee” called authorities.

But early last year, two Department of Fish and Wildlife wardens went undercover and said they tried on a jaguar coat and an ocelot coat, priced at $4,500 and $850, respectively. Two weeks later, agents served a search warrant at Decades of Fashion and seized a haul of clothes and accessories.

“Individuals who traffic in these goods must be held accountable to eliminate a market that contributes to these species’ demise,” District Attorney George Gascón said after charging Hansen. “There’s no second chance once these animals are gone.”

Hansen said that despite the case against her, business is thriving.

“People can’t understand why, when there’s people selling heroin down the street, why they’re not being disrupted, but I am,” she said.

Evan Sernoffsky is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: esernoffsky@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @EvanSernoffsky