California man threatens lawsuit over failed attempts to catch bear living under his house

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A man in California is frustrated and at his wit’s end after trying for months to get rid of a large bear that’s taken up residence under his house.

Kenneth Johnson of Altadena is considering a lawsuit against the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. He claims the state was negligent and caused him emotional distress by stopping efforts to remove a 550-pound bear that had gotten into his crawlspace.

KTLA reports that Johnson feels the department is no longer trying to help with the problem, even though the bear had been tagged and was already known to wildlife authorities.

Homeowner claims state abandoned the situation

Johnson said the situation has been ongoing for too long and needs to be addressed. The bear is already tagged, meaning wildlife officials have encountered it before. They previously chose not to put it down, and now it’s back to the same behavior, which will likely continue, he explained.

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife responded to Johnson’s statements, telling PEOPLE they’ve continued to work on the issue even with a small staff.

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife is dedicated to assisting Californians dealing with problem wildlife. Even with a small team, CDFW biologists have been regularly communicating with a homeowner since a bear was first reported entering their open crawlspace last November.

Wildlife experts have been trying to discourage the bear from coming back by using traps, cameras, and lights to monitor it, and by attempting to scare it away. They also stressed the importance of sealing off the crawlspace under the property to prevent future visits.

The CDFW has been and will continue to work with the homeowner, offering guidance on how to discourage the animal and emphasizing the importance of sealing off the crawlspace.

Johnson first suspected a bear was around in November, as he’d noticed damage to his home over the past year. He confirmed his suspicions when a security camera recorded the bear near his house, and even showed it entering the crawlspace.

Johnson told NBC Los Angeles that when he saw the damage, his first thought was, ‘Whatever caused this, it couldn’t have been a bear,’ simply because a bear is too large to fit in that space.

I have no idea how it managed to get underneath there! It’s incredibly flexible, almost like a contortionist. And it’s so large that its belly is dragging on the ground.

Johnson admits the bear’s presence is disruptive to his daily routine, though he doesn’t think it’s trying to hurt him.

He said it’s unsettling to even go into the kitchen, knowing a bear might be there. He feels safe as long as he avoids the side of the house when the bear is nearby.

Department officials tried to catch the bear in December, but they accidentally trapped a different animal instead. Video from Johnson and wildlife experts clearly showed that the captured animal wasn’t the bear that had been living under his house.

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2025-12-31 19:23