More on the “Droptine Bull”…
You may recall that I wrote about the contoversy surrounding a great bull that was recently killed in Arizona. I think that the hunter/guides will be found “technically” innocent. My gut says though, that if the distance to the nearest dwelling can be “legal” or “not” by a matter of inches (or feet) then maybe the shot should never have been taken.
This article shows that, legal or not - stories like this never bode well for hunters. Has the rack become that important, that we’ll take chances like this? In part, the article states
Porter Mountain residents angry over recent elk hunt
By: Sean Dieterich, The Independent
08/03/2007Area residents are upset after this large bull elk was shot by a hunter July 26 in their Mountain View Ranch neighborhood. The problem, according to Game and Fish and residents, is that the hunter shot too close to homes. Game and Fish has issued a citation to the hunter, Mike Malik of Michigan, for violating an Arizona law.
LAKESIDE - Some residents near Mountain View Ranch on Porter Mountain Road are distraught and angry after an elk hunt reportedly took place very close to their homes July 26.
Residents in the area awakened that morning to the sound of gunshots. After all was said and done, a large bull elk was killed and the Arizona Game and Fish Department has been left to sort things out.
Game and Fish has issued a citation to the hunter, Mike Malik of Michigan. Malik is the owner of Paradice Hunt Club in Davison, a 1,000-acre whitetail deer-hunting region and resort.
Curt Farrier, a resident near the area where the hunt took place, said it all unfolded a quarter-mile from his home. He said he woke up around 5:15 a.m. to the sound of a gunshot. Thinking it was a drive-by shooting at first, he went back to sleep but got out of bed when he decided something wasn’t right.
Neighbor Krissie Almour said a phone call woke her up at 5:30 a.m. The call came from neighbor John Babbitt, telling her not to go outside because hunters had shot an elk near her home.
“I was thinking, ‘What hunters? Where are the hunters?’” she said.
Around 5:35 a.m., Almour reportedly called Farrier’s house to relay the news. Farrier said while his wife talked with her, he heard more gunshots and yelled at the hunters to stop shooting because of other animals in the area. He said the elk finally went down at 6 a.m.
Farrier said during the hunt, the hunter and his outfitter were on private property.
“(The hunter is) supposed to be 440 yards away from a dwelling,” he said. “Every place they took a shot was in private land.”
Farrier said the first shot happened near a fence separating Mountain View Ranch from the rest of the properties in the area. Since the elk did not go down with the first shot, he said the hunter stalked it as it tried to get away. He said the hunter took the last shots near two houses.
“They got between the houses and shot,” he said.
Soon afterwards, Malik, outfitter John McClendon from Cottonwood, Arizona Game and Fish and the area residents converged on the spot where the elk fell and tried to figure out how it all happened. Farrier said many of the residents on scene were those who witnessed the act with no idea of what was going on.
“These people are all watching, freaking out,” he said.
Read the complete article at the link above.
[...] You may recall that I wrote about the contoversy surrounding a great bull that was recently killed in Arizona. I think that the hunter/guides will be found “technically” innocent. My gut says though, that if the distance to the nearest dwelling… …more [...]
August 4th, 2007 at 5:17 pm
And if you don’t think stuff like this gets noticed, go to the article via the link provided. Scroll down, and read the comments, from hunters and non-hunters alike…..
August 5th, 2007 at 10:08 am
[...] You may recall the controversy that enveloped the “Droptine Bull” killed in Northern Arizona last summer. You can read my first post here, and a follow-up post here. [...]
May 8th, 2008 at 9:46 pm