Police in New Jersey seek driver who struck 7 geese

CBS News

5 days ago

Seven geese were struck by a car in a New Jersey town, police said.
It happened on Monday on Devoe Road in Spotswood.
Investigators are still looking for the driver to determine whether it was on purpose.
A car appeared to have hit seven geese. A picture taken shortly after the incident shows that it was raining at the time, and roads were slick.
Geese are part of the scenery near Devoe Lake in Spotswood. They can sometimes be found on the busy road a few feet away.
"I mean, people get mad and honk at them but no one really hits them. I've been here for over 10 years," Spotswood resident Yan Betleman said.
"A lot of other cars, a lot of people stopping and taking pictures and such as well," another witness said. "I've lived here 37 years in the town and I've never seen something like that happen before."
Neighbors consider the birds pests, especially because of their droppings on lawns and sidewalks.
"I don't even like the geese," Pastor Keith Schneider said.
Schneider says he heard squawking after the seven were struck.
Geese are known to mourn. He noticed their behavior change.
"Their heads were low, they sit together, they don't eat. They were there for the whole day. That was sad," Schneider said.
At New Jersey Wild Geese Control, owner William Wharrie uses border collies to shoo the birds away without harming. Wharrie says it's common to see geese walking more than flying this time of year.
"It takes 30 days for the eggs to hatch, 30 days after that, parents lose their flight feathers. So they've molted their flight feathers and they can't fly. So they have to stay with the babies for the next 30, which is a critical time," Wharrie said.
Spotswood Police put out an alert about the incident, saying they are still looking for the driver. The department is conducting interviews with witnesses. So far, the police haven't been able to locate any video of it happening.
"What we're hoping to do is just interview the driver. Was it intentional? Was it just an accident? It was raining," Spotswood Police Capt. Edward Schapley said.
Depending on an interview with the driver, police could charge them with leaving the scene of an accident or failure to report it. If it was intentional, they could face hunting violations and animal cruelty charges at the state level, because geese are a protected species by the state and federal government.
Spotswood Police are asking anyone who may have seen the incident happen, or may have video of it happening, to contact them at 732-251-2121.