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As a 19-year veteran of the Philadelphia Police Department, Special Victims Unit Lt. Stephen Biello is used to hunting — criminals that is.
But on the weekends, the 44-year-old sets his sights on a different kind of prey and it’s typically covered in fur or feathers.
Hunting and clay pigeon shooting — the latter referred to as "sporting clays" or "clays" by hunters and done on a range with moving targets of small clay discs — are the lifelong South Philly resident’s passion.
Last month, Biello received his level-two certification in clays and his hunting education certification, both allowing him to teach adults and children. The latter was a course at the Pennsylvania Game Commission’s Southeast Regional Office.
In 2005, Biello shot in the U.S. Open of Sporting Clays in Salem, N.J., pumping out rounds with about 946 participants from all over the world. "The event was awesome, I got to shoot with the best shooters in the world and I learned a lot from them," he said.
Also that year and the following, Biello took part in other events, quickly developing a flair for the sport. After winning some and placing high in others, he decided to go for his first-level certification. June’s level-two certification took place over three days at Rock Mountain Sporting Clays in Meshoppen. In time, Biello would like to pursue the last and final level.
"I look forward to doing more sporting clays instruction and getting started as a hunter education instructor in the very near future," he said.
Born and raised in Bella Vista, Biello got a taste of nature at about age 8, going on family trips to his Uncle Ricci’s farm in Bradford County.
"Though I never actually hunted at that age, I was introduced to the outdoors and all that goes with it in the hunting aspect," the married father of a 4-year-old son and 6-year-old daughter said.
At 12, Biello started hunting with his uncle, cousins and neighborhood friends like Greg Isabella, who is still his hunting buddy as well as the owner of Firing Line shooting range in Pennsport.
"He’s probably the biggest influence of my life with hunting," Biello, who waited until age 14 to get his hunting license though the legal age is 12, said of his uncle.
About the same time Biello took to hunting, things got a bit fancy. A Fancy Brigade Mummer from ages 12 to 21, Biello performed with the Top Hat New Year’s Brigade. When that group disbanded, a few of the guys started The Entertainers Fancy Brigade.
"Both of them have since gone by the wayside," Biello recalled, adding so has his mummery.
Hunting has remained a constant, first with small game and pheasant then turning to deer in his late teens. His first conquest was a pheasant and he can easily recall his emotions when he pulled the shotgun trigger.
"It’s a very weird feeling. You are humbled and respectful of the animal and I still have these feelings today," he said.
Biello remembers well his first deer-hunting trip at 17 with neighborhood friends and an adult. "We ended up in a car accident and I spent two nights of hunting season in Bloomsburg University Hospital. Needless to say, it was unsuccessful," he said.
Hunting sparked his interest in clays. "It’s a natural off-shoot of hunting. It’s really the best way to practice hitting flying targets when hunting seasons are over," he said.
Isabella, Biello and other locals affiliated with Firing Line started a Philadelphia chapter of the National Wild Turkey Federation in ’05. The local arm, of which Biello is secretary, is called the Philadelphia County Fightin’ Spurs and hosts a banquet every year as well as throws its support behind the national organization for this one-time endangered bird.
Biello also is president of Philadelphia Hunting and Shooting Association, which, for the last two years, has held a youth field day at Holmesburg Fish & Game, the only outdoor gun club in Philadelphia. Last year, more than 80 kids and their parents attended, many from the area.
In addition, Biello belongs to more than half a dozen national hunter/conservation organizations like Pheasants Forever, Ducks Unlimited, Mule Deer Foundation and Bass Anglers Sportsmen Society. "[Hunting] really isn’t a hobby for me, it’s a way of life," he said.
Soft-spoken with a docile nature, the lieutenant said images of hunters as wild, bloodthirsty killers are far from accurate.
"I know several veterinarians who hunt," he said. "All day long they are saving animals and compassionate to animals — so look at that angle."
While some kill for the thrill, Biello has a steadfast rule: "If I don’t eat it, I don’t hunt it. I’m not a trophy hunter. If I happen to score on a big buck, the antlers are an extra bonus."
For Biello and many who engage in the ancient sport, it’s an escape, especially from city life.
"In an electronic age, it sets the senses back and sparks the primitive urges in people. Hunting is not for everybody. In today’s world it’s few and far between to find somebody that actually hunts. It’s almost coming to the point where hunting and hunters is a dirty word and you have to be closeted," he said.
With all the bloodshed he’s seen as a cop — having spent most of his career in South Police Division, first in the 17th District and years at South Detectives — and the lack of value placed on human life, he said he’s "very offended" by those who take aim at hunters. "Anything associated with a firearm suddenly becomes taboo," he said.
Today, Biello and his buddies hunt in Delaware and Pennsylvania, though he has gone to New Jersey and Montana.
Dove season is set by the federal government wildlife agencies and usually starts around Sept. 1. There are several deer seasons in a year, Biello said, but traditional rifle season for them starts the first Monday after Thanksgiving and runs for two weeks.
His German Wirehaired Pointer, Angel, accompanies him on all trips. "She was professionally trained and it’s really an awesome sight to watch a well-trained bird-dog work a field in search of game birds. I sometimes take friends hunting just so I can run my dog. I don’t even bring a gun, I just work my dog and watch her work. A good hunting dog is truly a remarkable creature," he said.
These days, Biello shoots more clays than real animals.
"It all comes down to time and demands for work or home. I get just as much stress relief and satisfaction out of having a great day shooting on the sporting clays course as I do if I was out in the field hunting — well maybe close to it," he said.
