Shooting an Animal you just struck with your vehicle

Call the Police. You will want a Police report for your Insurance Company and the Police or Animal Control/Game Warden will dispatch the injured deer.

You don't want to be found poaching deer or discharging a firearm where you shouldn't. In MN the Police or Game Warden can issue you a permit to posses a road kill deer out of season.

depends, alot, on location
some places you are required to, or allowed to
other will find some excuse to ticket you

I've done it. Of course it was where I knew the game warden, he knew me, and the animal was suffering badly, and I didn't feel like waiting for them to get there.

Where I live, it isn't considered poaching if it was obvious you didn't injure it intentionally, and you didn't plan on taking the animal.

In a reasonable world, you would do the right thing for the animal. This is rapidly becoming an unreasonable world. Me, I'd drive over the animal one more time to finish it off. If you shot it, they might think you're a terrorist. Then again, I live in NY. I think here you're expected to fill out an application for putting an animal out of its misery, attach a $300 check, and let it be processed through the proper channels.

For me it would depend on the road, traffic, and population. I would be much less likely to do so in the city, but much less likely to hesitate on a stretch of highway out in the country.

While I prefer not to let an animal suffer, I am not willing to put myself in legal jeopardy for it. I would, however, consider finishing the animal if I thought there was the possibility it would get back up, and into traffic again.

You are not likely to face this decision. If the animal is injured badly enough it cannot get back up and move, there's no reason to be in a hurry, wait for the police. If it is able to get back up and move, it will likely be up and gone faster than you get out of the vehicle.

Similar incident...only it wasn't I who hit the animal:

http://www.texaschlforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=50427&sid=e0ba89d5155465476e146cce9d09077f

If it happens, call the police for an accident report. Find the animal while or before you're on the phone, and ask the person on the other end. Where I grew up, they wouldn't want to let the animal suffer, and the local police would appreciate not having to account for the rounds themselves. Down here, I'm not sure.

Even if they're not sure of the exact legality, you're not likely to get into trouble if the sheriff's office tells you to shoot it. I'm sure it would fall under 'euthanizing an unwell animal' or 'dispatching a nuisance animal' on their paperwork.

I've also considered this scenario. I always have a knife with me and would likely skip the risk and dispatch it as I would in the woods.

Not sure about the rules regarding shooting it, here in CT, but I know that if you kill it with a car you can get a cop to tag it and you can at least take it home.

I would call the popo. If you discharged your firearm who knows what [if anything] the cops would charge you for.

One thing I just thought about, ear protection. Surely most of us don't travel with a set in the car do we? I've never discharged my firearm w/o it so maybe one shot wouldn't be so bad?

Depends a lot where you live. I live in the boonies and usually have a rifle in the truck. Yep, I also have hearing protection hooked on to one of my cup holders.

Many road injured deer move off the roadway and onto private property before falling. This is also something you must be aware of. I dispatched an injured deer a couple of years ago that another vehicle had hit. It was off the roadway, but I know the property owner. After I shot the deer, I called the game warden. He thanked me for taking care of the problem. This might have gone differently in a different state or even in a more populated area within this state.

I have been in this scenario twice now. The first time I hit a deer or rather it ran into the side of the car, I was dressed in a Tux. Fortunately the next truck coming down the road stopped and the guy was on his way home from a hunt. He dispatched it with a blade, no noise no fuss. Tossed the deer in his truck. Never called the Police, damage was less than my deductible.

The second time I was unarmed and called the Police. What a laugh, first Deputy to show up I knew well he had never been hunting and didn't have a clue. He called dispatch who sent another Deputy. He didn't hunt either, but had shot a deer at the roadside once before. He said he put a whole clip in the deer and it was still alive. Finally a friend showed up equipped and dispatched the deer. Whole episode took almost two hours. Funny thing is I live in an are where every day shots ring out and I see more people in camo at the grocery store than I did on base! What's the odds I get the only two cops who don't hunt

depends if my deer tag is empty for me as long as its not mush , as for legality depends which fish and game officer i can get ahold one of em would fine me for poaching and take everthing that wasnt bolted down and the oppisite one would have me throw it in my truck or his ( if its edible enough ) and run it down to the butcher for the poor house

My buddy's girlfriend popped a deer with her little Pontiac Sunfire, and they called me over to finish it off. It was on a rural curving road, and there were a few houses around. I sent a 12 gauge slug through its heart/lungs and ended it. It was about 10pm.

At any rate, it was the right thing to do, but we didn't wait around for the cops to show up and high-five me for my deed.

I was raised to not let an animal suffer needlessly. I'd do what needed to be done, and if that came with consequences, so be it. In my heart, I know ending the pain is the right thing to do, and I'd hope most reasonable leo's or conservation officers would see things the same way. If not, following my heart may be a costly mistake. So be it. Certain things are black and white to me, and letting an animal suffer when I have the means to end said suffering is a no brainer to me.

In some states you may legally salvage any game animal killed by accident even if it is not in season. For example, Christmas night someone hit a big deer on my road and the next morning it was gone. Somebody evidently took it home and butchered it.

I've done it 3 times, once with a deer I hit, once with a cat that someone else hit, and once shot an Amish boys horse that was injured beyond hope, not sure what had happened to the horse other than the owners asked that I put it out of its misery, and I was positive there was nothing a vet could do.

Hearing protection? Never even considered it.

the animal was suffering badly

Click to expand...

If the animal was immobile and I could safely approach, I might use a tire-iron, knife or shovel I keep in a car. Too many legal risks here to use a firearm; I don't like that my state may some day "force" me to watch an animal suffer, but that doesn't change what is.

Oh: slow down. Don't over-run your headlights. Missing a deer is better than giving it a coup de grace.

Missing a deer is better than giving it a coup de grace.

Click to expand...

I've seen the results when the deer hits the car, as in runs into the side of the car, maybe the deer should slow down. LOL
Deer lost out on this also as its neck was broken and was put down.

BeerSleeper. That was brilliant. I never thought of the justification that the animal might get back up and wander into traffic, endangering others. That's smart thinking. Here in NY, that would at least get the charges reduced or dropped afterwards. But by then your guns would be gone. But it really is the best justification I've heard yet.

maybe the deer should slow down.

Click to expand...

They should, but we can't control that. We can control us.

I have so far missed them all (even though I refuse to swerve at high speed). Part of that is luck, and part of that isn't. The part that isn't is the part I control.

that would at least get the charges reduced or dropped afterwards

Click to expand...

If that's your goal, you win! If your goal was to avoid being arrested and changed...

Call the Police. You will want a Police report for your Insurance Company and the Police or Animal Control will dispatch the injured deer.

Click to expand...

This, and when reporting the incident Always say the deer hit me, not that you hit the deer. An insurance adjuster friend of mine told me this a long time ago that they will sometimes try and weasel out of a claim if you tell them you hit the deer.

In Wyoming, I would be charged with taking a game animal out of season and without the proper license, regardless of how good my excuse was. Potentially could have hunting privileges revoked and firearm confiscated. Sucks, as I was also raised to avoid unnecessary misery and would be inclined to dispatch an injured animal. Many places in this state, it could take hours for law enforcement to reach the site. If I had cell phone coverage to contact them in the first place. I'd be inclined to put the animal down anyway, depending on location and circumstances. And yes I carry hearing protection in my vehicle.