Deer Shot to Death by Atlantic City Police
Oct. 15--A deer who apparently took a two-day trip to Atlantic City was shot and killed by police Saturday morning over concerns for its safety and the public, police said.
Residents first saw the deer near marshland at the Ventnor-Atlantic City border Friday. He was again spotted by a police patrol unit at 4:05 a.m. Saturday, where he was seen running through residential yards and playgrounds, Sgt. Monica McMenamin said. The deer also walked through Chelsea Village and was spotted at the Atlantic City Hilton Casino Resort's porte-cochere.
Police continued to chase the deer and even tried to get him into a van with no success.
Representatives from the state Department of Environmental Protection's Division of Fish and Wildlife arrived at 5:36 a.m. At that point, the deer was seen leaping 6-foot-high chainlink fences, McMenamin said.
"Officers tried several times to barricade the deer to no avail," the transcript from the calls states.
Sgt. Kien Nhan, the patrol supervisor on shift, called for a tranquilizer to contain the animal. However, it was decided at 7:18 a.m. that the deer needed to be taken down. A release from police did not make clear whether a tranquilizer was ever brought to the scene. There were no other details available, McMenamin said.
Nhan shot once, and the deer was killed.
McMenamin said the sergeant took all necessary precautions and made the required notifications before shooting.
Fish and Wildlife took the deer's body.
This was the second deer sighting on Absecon Island this year. In April, Margate firefighter Mike Palmer posted video online of a deer running along Amherst Avenue. Several reports of sightings followed. Residents in Margate and Ventnor created nicknames for the buck and fed him apples in their backyards. It was unclear whether the so-called "Margate deer" was the same one who took an eventually fatal trip to Atlantic City.
Contact Dan Good:
609-272-7203
Copyright 2011 - The Press of Atlantic City, Pleasantville, N.J.