May 28, 2010
Teen reportedly kills deer with pellet gun in Troy
In what one Troy police lieutenant said is an unusual case, a deer was believed to have been killed Thursday after being shot with a pellet gun by a Sterling Heights teen.
Lt. Michael Lyczkowski said today that at about 10 p.m. Thursday, a resident on Eckford was watching three deer, when he heard a loud popping sound and then saw one of the deer collapse in a neighboring yard.
The neighbor called police and then approached three young men – including the 17-year-old from Sterling Heights who was visiting his aunt on Eckford – and told them to stay put, Lyczkowski said.
He said an officer observed the deer bleeding from its mouth, but there were no visible signs of an entry or exit wound from a pellet.
“It does seem surprising that it did do that,” Lyczkowski said of the pellet gun.
The teen, he said, admitted to shooting the deer with the pellet gun and was released at the scene pending further investigation. Lyczkowski said there are discussions now as to whether Troy police or the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and Environment will handle the investigation.
Depending on which investigates, Lyczkowski said the teen could face state hunting violations or violations of the city ordinances that address hunting and the discharge of firearms.
Lyczkowski said the deer meat has been donated to a local charity.