SEBRING, Fla - An 81-year-old Sebring woman is behind bars tonight for repeatedly feeding black bears at home after being warned to stop by a judge multiple times. 
 
 Mary Musselman, of 5240 Kenilworth Boulevard, is now facing charges ranging from violating probation to battery on a law enforcement officer. 
 
 "I think it is outrageous," said Karron Tedder, Musselman's former student. 
 
 In the small town of Sebring, Musselman is well known. She is a retired gym teacher who worked at the local middle school. 
 
 Tedder described her as gentle hearted, sweet and someone who is harmless. 
 
 Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission officials told ABC Action News trouble with Musselman began last year when they had to euthanize a black bear she kept feeding. 
 
 "Feeding bears results in bears losing their fear of people," explained Gary Morse, FWC spokesperson. 
 
 He added that once those behaviors are learned a bear cannot be relocated. The behaviors interrupt the animal's natural instincts. 
 
 Morse said officers 'went the extra mile' to educate Musselman about the dangers of feeding wildlife. They brought out educational videos, talked with her and left pamphlets. 
 
 "She told us she wasn't going to stop," Morse recalled. 
 
 And, she didn't. 
 
 She even continued on after being issued a warning on Nov. 8. 
 
 FWC officers went back to her property on Nov. 19 and reported that Musselman was feeding two more bears. At this point, officers came back with more educational videos. 
 
 Then, on Dec. 4, Musselman was issued a notice to appear in court on Dec. 6. 
 
 The judge ordered her to stop feeding all wild animals and FWC officers were ordered to check on her residence weekly. 
 
 According to FWC officers, on Dec. 24, Musselman again appeared in court and admitted feeding two to three bears large amounts of food. 
 
 "We are talking about putting out as many as 17 or 18 bowls of dog food," Morse explained. 
 
 A judge found her guilty of two counts of feeding wildlife. She was placed on probation for one year and FWC officers were ordered to visit her home weekly. 
 
 On Dec. 29, FWC officers say they found evidence Musselman was continuing to feed bears. 
 
 "Unfortunately, she didn't heed the warnings," Morse said. 
 
 A judge ordered FWC officers to arrest her. 
 
 According to Morse, when FWC officers arrested Musselman, she threatened to kill the officers and resisted. 
 
 Morse said Musselman put her neighbors and the community at risk. 
 
 "Feeding wildlife puts the community at risk from property destruction to possible danger of life and limb," he explained. 
 
 Musselman reportedly told officers she had to feed the bears or they would starve to death. 
 
 "She didn't want to accept that fact that they'd be fine without her...they hibernate when there is no food," Morse added. 
 
 Tedder said Musselman is an avid animal lover. 
 
 Musselman's former students, some from four decades ago, gathered out front of her home and prayed Thursday night. They have tried to bail her out but she is being held without bond. 
 
 Her former students fear Musselman cannot fully comprehend the judges orders or the seriousness of the charges. 
 
 "This is out of her character to act as she did," Tedder said. 
 
 Tedder added that Musselman would not have intentionally broken the law. 
 
 Musselman's former students want to get her back home as soon as possible because her husband is dying of cancer. 
 
 They say the couple has no children and no caregiver. 
 
 They are also working to find a mental health advocate to go before a judge on her behalf. 
 
 Musselman is slated appear before a judge on March 3. 
 
 FWC EXPERTS CANVASSED COUNTY 
 
 According to Morse, between October of last year and January of this year, FWC staff and volunteers canvassed hundreds of homes in the Sebring and Lake Placid area with information about how to live with bears and help conserve them, without creating the conditions that spawn nuisance, destructive, and potentially dangerous behavior. 
 
 Staff even appeared on a radio show on WWOJ to promote the attitudes and actions that make living in bear country safe for everyone, including the bears, Morse said. 
 
 To learn more about black bears, click here . ||||| SEBRING - An 81-year-old Sebring woman arrested late last year after being accused of illegally feeding bears, was again arrested this week and accused of violation of probation, besides threatening to kill an officer, according to a report. 
 
 Mary H. Musselman, 5240 Kenilworth Blvd., Sebring, was arrested by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and also charged with resisting an officer with violence and battery on a law enforcement officer. 
 
 Musselman was placed on probation Jan. 24 for two counts of feeding black bears, according to a probable cause affidavit from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. 
 
 Originally, she had been placed on diversion, meaning that if she didn't violate the law for a certain period of time, her charges would have been removed the record. 
 
 But the affidavit said she violated the diversion agreement and was placed on probation. 
 
 Musselman was arrested on the violation of probation charge after an FWCC officer saw outside Musselman's house "numerous bowls and trays with birdseed and corn, four hanging birdfeeders with birdseed in them, a wooden plank and a whole corn with and birdseed and whole corn on the ground." 
 
 As part of her probation, Musselman had been ordered not to put out food for animals for a year, the affidavit said. 
 
 Gary Morse, spokesman for the commission, said officers had been dealing with Musselman since November 2012 after getting a report that she fed bears. As a result, one of the bears was euthanized. 
 
 Under Florida law its a misdemeanor to feed bears, Morse said. 
 
 "It's pretty well known what the consequences are of feeding bears," Morse said. The bear will lose its fear of humans and will become more apt to search for food in areas where humans live, he said. 
 
 Once a bear has been fed and lost its fear of humans, Morse said, there's little choice but to trap and euthanize the animal. 
 
 "You can't relocate them because they become problems somewhere else," he said. 
 
 Most of the problems between bears and humans in Florida come about because someone is intentionally - such as by leaving out food for other animals or leaving garbage cans unsecured - or unintentionally feeding the bears, Morse said. It's also illegal to feed alligators, raccoons, pelicans and sandhill cranes, he said. 
 
 The issues regarding Musselman began in early November when the agency received a report about her feeding bears, Morse said. An FWCC officer visited Musselman and learned that she had been feeding one or more bears for several months, he said. 
 
 Musselman was given a warning, told that feeding bears is illegal and educated about the problems associated with that, he said. 
 
 On, Nov. 12, the bear she was feeding as of Nov. 8 was euthanized because it was deemed to be causing a problem, he said. 
 
 But despite several visits and warnings, he said, Musselman continued to feed bears. 
 
 Eventually, she got a notice to appear in court on the charge of feeding bears, Morse said. 
 
 After she was placed on probation, a judge ordered that FWCC officers check weekly on whether she was feeding animals. 
 
 When they found that she was, a judge ordered her arrested and officers went to her residence on Jan. 29, the affidavit said. 
 
 Musselman ordered the officers off her property, the report said, adding that when FWCC officers assisted by Highlands County deputies tried to arrest her, she lunged at them and kicked them, the affidavit said. 
 
 A deputy told the FWCC officer that Musselman said when she's released if the FWCC officer comes on her property Musselman will kill her, the report said. 
 
 jmeisel@highlandstoday.com 
 
 (863) 386-5834
– An 81-year-old woman is in prison without bond for feeding bears vast quantities of dog food—and refusing to stop, officials say. Mary Musselman, a retired gym teacher, allegedly fed bears when they visited her property in Sebring, Florida. "We are talking about putting out as many as 17 or 18 bowls of dog food," a Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission rep tells WFTS. Apparently the bears were big fans: They kept returning, CNN reports.Officials, who last year had to euthanize a bear Musselman was feeding, told her she had to stop. "Feeding bears results in bears losing their fear of people," a Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission rep tells WFTS. But "she told us she wasn't going to stop." She reportedly kept feeding them despite repeated visits from wildlife officials carrying informational videos and brochures. Even a judge's warning wasn't enough to stop Musselman; apparently, she believed the bears would starve if she didn't feed them. Finally, officers arrived to arrest her—and she fought them, threatening to kill them, they say. She's charged with feeding wildlife, battery against an officer, and violating probation that had required her not to feed animals, per Highlands Today. Now her former students are coming to her aid, calling the arrest "outrageous" and looking for a mental health worker to join her in court. They say she needs to be released to continue to care for her husband, who has terminal cancer.