Deer incident needs analysis

  • ANR
    ANR

    Dear Editor:
    Page A2 of the June 7 issue of the News-Register has an article about a deer jumping through the windows of a business/residence. I believe the situation needs an analysis. 
    According to the article, a call came in about deer running loose is town. The proper response should have been, “So?” Or “So what?” What damage will they do? Nibble on someone’s garden? First of all, one must be smarter than a deer, which obviously the responding officers are not. 
    A deer is a wild animal. But it is not vicious like lions, tigers and bears, oh my! A deer is a curious but shy animal whose instinct is to run away from perceived danger. They can run very fast, and that is what they do when frightened. 
    So, the rookie officer, obviously not originally from a rural area, thinks, oh boy! This is my chance to play cowboy. Or, in this case, deer-boy, so he decides to have a personal roundup. Yippee! However, a deer, like a cat, cannot be herded. 
    Then the chief, who should have known better, decides to join in the fun. The two deer boys then chase the frightened deer into a dead-end alley. So, what does the panicked deer do? It leaps through what appears to it to be its only exit, crash through a window, then crash out another window. Only property damage this time, but what if a person would have been on the other side of the window? A small child or baby? Must a home-owner avoid window areas on a ground floor when these deer boys are on the loose? 
    The windows had to be replaced. It should not be the responsibility of the property owners, nor their insurance, to pay for the damage. Since it was caused by lack of judgement and common sense on the part of the officers, the city’s liability insurance should cover all the costs, including their cleanup and interruption of their business. 
    So, what happened to the deer? Hopefully it was not seriously injured. When left alone, it did what any good deer will do. Leave them alone and they will leave town, wagging their tails behind them.
    Leon Cederlind
    Phillips