Drizzt
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Raleigh varmint hunter spooks neighbors
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Jason Williams keeps his gun — a .22-caliber squirrel-killer with a scope — propped by the sink.
He bags the varmints as they raid his pear tree and chomp his fig bush in his woodsy backyard just blocks from Crabtree Valley Mall. It's a family practice going back decades.
But newer neighbors do not cotton to Williams squirrel hunts. In a single July week, they called police three times.
"As it stands, I have fired four rounds, killed four squirrels and been visited by four police officers," said Williams, who is 41. "The first time, they SWAT-deployed. This is silly."
Hunting squirrels, rats and pigeons is perfectly legal in Raleigh yards provided you get a 90-day permit like the one Williams keeps taped to his front door.
The law dates to at least 1959, when Williams' Brookhaven neighborhood was outside city limits and the nearby mall was a cow pasture.
Granting special permits was a nod to people who thought they had a "plethora of pests," said City Attorney Thomas McCormick.
Times and neighborhoods have changed. Brookhaven might still be quiet and wooded, the sort of place where families spend eight or nine years and still are considered "new-ish."
But residents note that 80-plus townhouses are going up nearby, and Glenwood Avenue is one of the busiest streets in Raleigh.
"It certainly is far from rural," said Bee Weddington, who lives in the neighborhood. "I hate the squirrels, too, but I don't like guns. I'm not one of those crusaders, but there's always a chance you could harm some animal who's a pet, or a person, or a child."
Weddington, who is not one the neighborhood complainers, said legalized squirrel hunting surprised her. Only nine people have the permits citywide.
Williams, though, has a stack of permits dating back to the 1980s, when Brookhaven was annexed. When neighbors called the police, he sent them copies by registered mail.
The squeamishness about guns bothers him. By city law, he can use no rifle larger than a .22-caliber, and he must use rat shot, which will travel only about 25 feet.
"You could shoot your buddy in the (behind) with one and it would feel like a mosquito — if it cut through your pants," he said.
A forestry consultant, Williams has been hunting since age 5. He keeps his guns in a safe — including the rifle, when not actively pursuing varmints. He aims for animals on tree trunks so the round will strikes the bark if it misses the squirrel.
And rat shot, he says while demonstrating, can be fired from his rifle only one round at a time.
"You're not going to be bursting out in the back yard going 'Bam, bam, bam, bam. Oh, sorry Bob. I hit your head.' It's just impossible," he said.
So far this year, squirrels have torn through hundreds of pears he had been planning to can, scattering the rotten fruit across his yard.
He tried putting out deer corn for them, but they ate through a garbage can to get to a larger supply. He tried non-lethal have-a-heart traps, but he couldn't catch them.
If neighbors would ask, Williams said, he could show them that his hunting is responsible and safe.
"Yankees," said his girlfriend, Dawn Wiggins. "This isn't Brooklyn. Were not popping people over here. One he fired, I was sitting in the house, and I never even heard it."
The last time police visited, Williams said, the senior officer shook his head and walked away, cursing wasted time.
Williams feels for the police. There are criminals to catch, he said. Leave the varmints to him.
http://beta.news-record.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050805/NEWSREC0101/50805013
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Jason Williams keeps his gun — a .22-caliber squirrel-killer with a scope — propped by the sink.
He bags the varmints as they raid his pear tree and chomp his fig bush in his woodsy backyard just blocks from Crabtree Valley Mall. It's a family practice going back decades.
But newer neighbors do not cotton to Williams squirrel hunts. In a single July week, they called police three times.
"As it stands, I have fired four rounds, killed four squirrels and been visited by four police officers," said Williams, who is 41. "The first time, they SWAT-deployed. This is silly."
Hunting squirrels, rats and pigeons is perfectly legal in Raleigh yards provided you get a 90-day permit like the one Williams keeps taped to his front door.
The law dates to at least 1959, when Williams' Brookhaven neighborhood was outside city limits and the nearby mall was a cow pasture.
Granting special permits was a nod to people who thought they had a "plethora of pests," said City Attorney Thomas McCormick.
Times and neighborhoods have changed. Brookhaven might still be quiet and wooded, the sort of place where families spend eight or nine years and still are considered "new-ish."
But residents note that 80-plus townhouses are going up nearby, and Glenwood Avenue is one of the busiest streets in Raleigh.
"It certainly is far from rural," said Bee Weddington, who lives in the neighborhood. "I hate the squirrels, too, but I don't like guns. I'm not one of those crusaders, but there's always a chance you could harm some animal who's a pet, or a person, or a child."
Weddington, who is not one the neighborhood complainers, said legalized squirrel hunting surprised her. Only nine people have the permits citywide.
Williams, though, has a stack of permits dating back to the 1980s, when Brookhaven was annexed. When neighbors called the police, he sent them copies by registered mail.
The squeamishness about guns bothers him. By city law, he can use no rifle larger than a .22-caliber, and he must use rat shot, which will travel only about 25 feet.
"You could shoot your buddy in the (behind) with one and it would feel like a mosquito — if it cut through your pants," he said.
A forestry consultant, Williams has been hunting since age 5. He keeps his guns in a safe — including the rifle, when not actively pursuing varmints. He aims for animals on tree trunks so the round will strikes the bark if it misses the squirrel.
And rat shot, he says while demonstrating, can be fired from his rifle only one round at a time.
"You're not going to be bursting out in the back yard going 'Bam, bam, bam, bam. Oh, sorry Bob. I hit your head.' It's just impossible," he said.
So far this year, squirrels have torn through hundreds of pears he had been planning to can, scattering the rotten fruit across his yard.
He tried putting out deer corn for them, but they ate through a garbage can to get to a larger supply. He tried non-lethal have-a-heart traps, but he couldn't catch them.
If neighbors would ask, Williams said, he could show them that his hunting is responsible and safe.
"Yankees," said his girlfriend, Dawn Wiggins. "This isn't Brooklyn. Were not popping people over here. One he fired, I was sitting in the house, and I never even heard it."
The last time police visited, Williams said, the senior officer shook his head and walked away, cursing wasted time.
Williams feels for the police. There are criminals to catch, he said. Leave the varmints to him.
http://beta.news-record.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050805/NEWSREC0101/50805013
