Voices concern on hunters in developing residential areas

by Michael A. Burwell
Lewiston Porter Sentinel, December 4, 2004

On Nov. 22 [opening day for deer/rifle hunting season] while getting ready for work, I had the wonderful experience of having my house shot by a hunter who was in a tree stand 14 feet off the ground in the field behind me.

Before I go any further, I would like to clearly state that I am not anti-hunter. My father was a hunter and I while I myself do not hunt, I realize the important role that hunters play in controlling animal populations.

I reside in a cul-de-sac off Pletcher Road and the fields behind me are bordered by Calkins Road and Creek Road down by the Lew-Port schools, and have lived there for over four years. While I have heard gun shots coming from behind my house before, I have never heard any of them as close as the two shots that were fired on Monday. I also will never forget those two loud cracks and the sickening sound of the thud of the second shot as it struck my house.

As soon as I heard the shots ... I called 911 immediately. Right after I hung up the phone, I threw some clothes on and went outside to see where my house was hit. I have a sliding patio door off our kitchen that opens directly to our back deck, but I could not slide it open [which I found out later on why).

I went through my garage and walked to the back of my house. ... I noticed that there were six children and several mothers waiting for the school bus to arrive. Immediately, as I went around the corner to the back yard, I noticed the hunter in the tree stand in the field.

When I went to (check) the back deck from a distance, it was easy to see the bullet hole in the center frame of my patio door. I quickly realized the reason the screen door would not slide open was (because) the bullet had gone through the metal screen first, then penetrated the glass door support, pinning them both together.

Shortly, a Lewiston police officer, then a Niagara County sheriff arrived. The two officers put on their yellow and orange rain wear and safety vests and walked through the field to the tree stand and the hunter that I pointed out to them when they first arrived. It seemed odd that the hunter never left his stand, although the police cars and all of us were in plain sight and it was very obvious something was going on.

After speaking with the hunter, the two officers came walking out of the field with a muzzle loader that was still loaded, as well as a pistol that they took from the hunter, both which were loaded with .357 shells [the same as ... was eventually removed from my door]. The hunter, meanwhile, walked towards Calkins Road.

The police officers said the hunter was very upset and said he had only fired one shot from the gun. ... I had to wait for a different sheriff from forensics to take pictures, as well as dig out the bullet to be analyzed to verify that it was indeed, fired from the hunter ... and not from someone else.

Later that day, the DEC stopped by to take measurements because they are actually the overseers of hunters in New York. The DEC came back the following day to take more measurements, as well as speak with the hunter, who ... lives (nearby).

On Wednesday morning, the DEC again came to my house, this time to take statements from myself and my neighbors who had heard the shots. At this time, the officer from the DEC informed me that the hunter had changed his story, admitting to firing three shots, one from his muzzleloader and two shots from his pistol. He also said that the hunter indicated to him that one of the shots was fired when the deer was 50 yards away, and the second shot was fired when the deer was 75 yards away. The officer did not mention anything about the third shot.

During our conversation, the DEC officer informed me that this hunter has been hunting back in those fields for 10 years.

I can appreciate when after this first happened that this hunter was upset and I truly believe he did not intentionally aim for my house, but obviously, exhibited an error in judgment.

...While I’m sure this hunter did not intend to do what happened, his error of judgment could have had fatal consequences. I had been in the kitchen 15 minutes prior, and had the bullet traveled 1-1/2 inches to the left ... or ... to the right, it would have gone through the glass and over the kitchen table I had been sitting at. ...

The most disturbing thing was that had the deer run in a westerly direction toward the gorge, and the hunter still fired at it, the bullet, as well as the hunter (would have) had an open straight line from the tree stand to the school bus stop. After I had calmed down, I realized how truly fortunate all of us were that the hunter missed me and the children and instead hit my house.

As I said before, I’m sure that this hunter just exhibited an error of judgment in the excitement of opening day, but the captain of the Titanic also erred in his judgment on its maiden voyage and we all know the rest of that story.

At this time, we are waiting the ballistic results and if everything is as it appears to be, it will be up to the district attorney as to whether he wants to file reckless endangerment charges. Let me say that if the DA does not file charges, I most certainly will.

All of the above should also serve as an example of the potentially fatal consequences concerning the upcoming Riverwalk development. Although it has not received its final approval, based on the past actions and decisions by our elected officials, this development is going to be a reality. Although there is a potential of a 50-foot buffer zone in some locations, there may be none in others where the development backs up to state property.

It has been brought up at prior meetings about the possibility of hunters hunting on state land in the vicinity of this development. Although it has not been given the attention it deserves [in fact the comment was made at a town meeting that there really wasn’t any wildlife of consequence] that was the end of that. I am not sure as to how the wildlife census was taken for those areas, but whether this is little or even no wildlife in those areas, there will be hunters there. The one thing that you can be sure of is that it takes but one bullet and an error of judgment to kill one child.

...I would also like to ask our town officials what are they going to do to prohibit hunting in the field in our neighborhood, as well as to how they can offer the future residents of the Riverwalk development that will never experience what I recently did.

I look forward to hearing their reply.