PORTLAND - The custody battle over Snowball has reached the Oregon Court of Appeals and the state likened the deer to "non-returnable contraband," just like drugs and guns.

KGW photo

Snowball, the pet deer.

The case dates back to 2001 when James Filipetti and Francesca Mantei of Molalla rescued Snowball from near death as a fawn, paying for surgeries to repair her deformed hind legs.

But when state wildlife agents found out last years, they said the couple broke the law by taking the deer from the wild and keeping her without a permit. They seized Snowball, now at Wildlife Safari in Winston.

"If someone chose to have a mountain lion or a cougar that they were keeping in their home and the state confiscated that cougar, but then chose not to bring a prosecution against them, under the Filipetti theory of the case, the state would have to give that cougar back to the family and that would probably not be a very good thing," said Jake Weigler with the Oregon Department of Justice, speaking on behalf of the state.

"Had they just on agent in the car pulled up sand said ‘do you have a deer, not such a good idea, get a permit or please don’t have a deer,’ we would not be here, easily at all today. It was the state’s overreaching response," argued Geordie Duckler, an attorney for the Filipetti family.

A judge previously ordered the state to return Snowball to the family, but the state appealed.

Last week, the couple settled a defamation suit against the state, which didn't pay damages but did include a signed agreement that praised the couple for their compassion and said it regretted suggesting they broke the law.

Meantime, Tuesday in appeals court, attorneys for the Filipetti family argued that the word "contraband" does not appear in any of the legal wording of statutes involving their case.

It will likely take about six months for the court of appeals to reach a decision.

The state has already signed a document promising not to push the case higher, to the Oregon State Supreme Court, if their latest appeal attempt fails.