Bowhunter kills donkey in Amity
AMITY — A Niagara Falls hunter was arrested Saturday after mistaking a donkey for a deer in the town of Amity in Allegany County. Saturday was the first day of archery season in New York.
Conservation Police Lt. Ken Didion, of the state Department of Environmental Conservation’s Division of Law Enforcement, said Michael A. Crampton, 38, of 1158 Pasadena Ave., Niagara Falls, was charged with hunting over bait, a violation, and unjustifiable killing of an animal under the state Agriculture and Markets Law, a misdemeanor.
Lt. Didion said Crampton was hunting next to a salt lick, which is illegal in lands inhabited by deer. The owner of the camp where Crampton was staying, Michael J. Hansen, 40, of 6986 Jennifer Ave., Niagara Falls, was charged with the illegal placing of a salt lick.
The donkey, owned by James Whitney of 4521 Back River Road, Amity, wandered onto the adjacent property and was killed at the salt lick. Mr. Whitney and Mr. Hansen, the camp owner, notified Amity-based state police of the incident. Lt. Didion said Crampton told investigators he couldn’t see the head of the donkey before he shot it. The donkey weighed about 400 pounds and was light gray in color, he said.
AMITY — A Niagara Falls hunter was arrested Saturday after mistaking a donkey for a deer in the town of Amity in Allegany County. Saturday was the first day of archery season in New York.
Conservation Police Lt. Ken Didion, of the state Department of Environmental Conservation’s Division of Law Enforcement, said Michael A. Crampton, 38, of 1158 Pasadena Ave., Niagara Falls, was charged with hunting over bait, a violation, and unjustifiable killing of an animal under the state Agriculture and Markets Law, a misdemeanor.
Lt. Didion said Crampton was hunting next to a salt lick, which is illegal in lands inhabited by deer. The owner of the camp where Crampton was staying, Michael J. Hansen, 40, of 6986 Jennifer Ave., Niagara Falls, was charged with the illegal placing of a salt lick.
The donkey, owned by James Whitney of 4521 Back River Road, Amity, wandered onto the adjacent property and was killed at the salt lick. Mr. Whitney and Mr. Hansen, the camp owner, notified Amity-based state police of the incident. Lt. Didion said Crampton told investigators he couldn’t see the head of the donkey before he shot it. The donkey weighed about 400 pounds and was light gray in color, he said.
