buckee Posted March 24, 2007 Report Share Posted March 24, 2007 [ QUOTE ] Police encounter with hunter leads to payment of bow repairs From southern Connecticut’s The Advocate Bryan Roddy, 45, of Norwalk, was hunting in Laura and Bob Feghali's North Stamford back yard Dec. 30 when an officer responding to a neighbor's report of a "man with a gun in a tree" approached and demanded he drop his weapon, according to the police report. Roddy, a contractor working on the Feghalis' house, had permission to hunt deer on their 1-acre property at 68 Saddle Hill Road, off Rockrimmon Road. Roddy was reluctant to drop the bow, saying it would be damaged it if fell to the ground, but complied after Officer Glenn Coppola drew his gun, according to the report. "Only after several stern commands did this male drop his bow and arrows," Coppola wrote in his report. Roddy said he tried to lower the bow to the ground with a rope but Coppola ordered him to drop it. "The officer, at gunpoint, made me drop the bow about 30 feet," he said. Roddy filed a claim against the city for $469.56, the cost of repairing the BowTech compound bow. "Damage to my $1,100 bow was severe," Roddy wrote in his complaint. "I was scared, unhappy, and angry at how I was treated by an officer that was overreacting to a situation . . ." Roddy had a hunting license, written permission from the property owner, deer tags and a map of the property but no gun, according to the report. He was not arrested. Roddy is an experienced bow hunter who recently returned from a hunting excursion to Antarctica. He said police infringed on his right to hunt and "used extreme force and put me in the most dangerous situation in my life." Police spokesman Lt. Sean Cooney said the incident report states Coppola's gun was drawn, but it reads as if it was never pointed at Roddy. Cooney said Roddy threatened the officer. Coppola wrote in his report that Roddy said he could have "picked off" the officer as he approached. "That's a very odd statement to make, to say, 'I could have easily shot you as you walked up,' " Cooney said. "What a bizarre thing to say. What other way is there to interpret that?" Roddy denies saying that and contacted the police department's internal affairs division when he read the report. "He gave a police report that's very contrary to what happened," Roddy said. Cooney said there was no investigation because Roddy did not pursue it. "He was asked if he wanted to file a formal complaint and he did not," Cooney said. Roddy said the city agreed to pay for the bow repairs if he signed an agreement stating he would not sue, which he did. Director of Legal Affairs Thomas Cassone confirmed the city will pay for the repairs. "I'm not going to take it any further," Roddy said. "I just asked for reimbursement and nothing else. I am not an anti-police man - I am just the opposite - but what happened to me is a bad situation." Feghali said she was surprised police entered her back yard without knocking on her door. "They didn't approach us first. They approached Bryan first, with a gun pulled," she said. "I guess they were just reacting to what the neighbors said, but if they had just come to us first it wouldn't have been necessary." Cooney said police were doing their job. "We can't enter a home without a search warrant, but we can certainly go in a back yard if we have a report of a man with a gun in her back yard," Cooney said. Bow hunting is allowed on private property in Fairfield County from Sept. 15 to Jan. 31 provided the landowner signs a consent form, said Howard Kilpatrick, a wildlife biologist for the state Department of Environmental Protection. Unlike firearms hunting, in which hunters keep a 500-foot radius from a dwelling and must be on at least 10 acres or more, archery hunting has no limits on property size. Police Capt. Richard Conklin, who teaches hunting laws to city officers, said it's common for North Stamford residents to report hunters in the woods with weapons. "Hunting isn't cultural to our area," Conklin said. "It's a very urban area with some rural areas. A lot of people commute to New York City from here, so their knowledge of hunting is very limited." Some residents were surprised to learn hunting with firearms is allowed on some properties in North Stamford, he said. He teaches officers to approach with caution and get hunters to put down their weapons promptly before verifying their permits, Conklin said. "Once you check out everything and make sure everything is fine, they can go back to what they are doing," he said. [/ QUOTE ] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AdvantageTimberLou Posted March 24, 2007 Report Share Posted March 24, 2007 Re: Police encounter with hunter leads to ............ wow, that is an odd story for sure, 1 acre parcel he was hunting on and a nosey neighbor! Probably an anti that called 911 to save "her" deer! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buckee Posted March 24, 2007 Author Report Share Posted March 24, 2007 Re: Police encounter with hunter leads to ............ Yeah, my thoughts too. Kind of a catch 22 situation for the police, in this day and age. They have to respond to calls like that, and to protect themselves in the process, they tend to go by the book as far as procedure goes. It's too bad a little common sense wasn't used there, instead of procedure though, and of course the little lie in the report to justify his brain fart..LOL The last line made me laugh though, about allowing the person to resume what he was doing. Kinda tough with a busted bow...LOL I'm just glad to see no one got hurt, and the hunter got his bow fixed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PAstringking Posted March 24, 2007 Report Share Posted March 24, 2007 Re: Police encounter with hunter leads to ............ wow. some days i wonder about our police force. (no offense to any officers on here) i also believe the neighbor was probably trying to protect her deer that she feeds...or she is the crazy cat lady. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fisherguy Posted March 24, 2007 Report Share Posted March 24, 2007 Re: Police encounter with hunter leads to ............ see, it is a gun call..so you are gonna go expecting the worst, and with a weapon either drawn or very quickly accessable(depending on the officer and if they know any history of the area or involved parties). Once you get there and see a guy hunting...maybe that is a good time to ask the hunter to leave his bow in the tree and climb down to talk for a minute to verify he is suposed to be there. Hard to judge another officer when you weren't there though. Particularly since i can attest that if that is what the situation was...the call the officer got was probably very very different from reality. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IllinoisHunter Posted March 24, 2007 Report Share Posted March 24, 2007 Re: Police encounter with hunter leads to ............ If he has to drop his weapon at least just make him throw the arrows down. Dropping a bow from 30 feet is sure to cause damage. As most have said, I think the officer was just doing his job, but maybe a little overboard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Posted March 24, 2007 Report Share Posted March 24, 2007 Re: Police encounter with hunter leads to ............ Thats ridiculous. Did that officer actually think the bow hunter would be able to draw and shoot him with a bow faster than what he could draw and shoot a pistol? If I were the hunter I wouldnt have made them pay for damages, I would have asked to have the whole bow, accessories, and arrows replaced as well as pursued hunter harrassment charges since the property owner wasn't contacted first. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ildrhntr Posted March 24, 2007 Report Share Posted March 24, 2007 Re: Police encounter with hunter leads to ............ Well being a Deputy Sheriff and a Bow Hunter for 20 years I see both sides of the story. I have been at the Sheriff's Office for 15 yrs and one thing I can say. There are two versions of every story. The police verison and the suspect's verison. I am fortunate that I have a knowledge of hunting and the hunting laws plus a hole lot of common sense. I would guess the police officer was responding to the call as he was trained and probably had zero knowledge of hunting. I know in my dept there are very few hunters. Most are city boys. Unfortunately common sense is not a requirement to be a police officer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buckee Posted March 24, 2007 Author Report Share Posted March 24, 2007 Re: Police encounter with hunter leads to ............ [ QUOTE ] Unfortunately common sense is not a requirement to be a police officer [/ QUOTE ] Unfortunately common sense is not a requirement to be a human being either Police officers screw up sometimes, just like everyone else .........except me of course Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtnhunt Posted March 25, 2007 Report Share Posted March 25, 2007 Re: Police encounter with hunter leads to ............ Sounds like just a screwed up situation that came from a concerned person who could not tell a bow from a gun from where she was at. The way that reads, the witness saw that the cop had his gun drawn before there was even conversation, kind of goes against what the cop wrote in his report. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Swamphunter Posted March 25, 2007 Report Share Posted March 25, 2007 Re: Police encounter with hunter leads to ............ I as an LEO also can see both sides. Just because you arrive on scene of a man with a gun, only to find him with a bow, still does not mean he is not a possession of a handgun or whatever. I do think forcing Roddy to drop the bow as opposed to lowering it with a rope was a bit extreme. This Roddy seems like a decent experienced hunter and whether or not he made the comment about "picking off" the officer remains to be seen. In the situation... if Roddy had said that, I would tend to be just a little less caring when it came to having him drop the bow. Would I personally though...Monday morning quarterbacking, I'd have to say no. Sounds like the officer may have overreacted a bit. City boy.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hoyt_hunter Posted March 25, 2007 Report Share Posted March 25, 2007 Re: Police encounter with hunter leads to ............ i agree with Ill. hunter, y couldn't he just make him drop all of his arrows? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buckee Posted March 25, 2007 Author Report Share Posted March 25, 2007 Re: Police encounter with hunter leads to ............ [ QUOTE ] i agree with Ill. hunter, y couldn't he just make him drop all of his arrows? [/ QUOTE ] Because he was from the city Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravin R10 man Posted March 25, 2007 Report Share Posted March 25, 2007 Re: Police encounter with hunter leads to ............ Id NEVER drop my bow..officer or not..I'll lower it down.. shoot me if ya dont like it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Swamphunter Posted March 25, 2007 Report Share Posted March 25, 2007 Re: Police encounter with hunter leads to ............ [ QUOTE ] Id NEVER drop my bow..officer or not..I'll lower it down.. shoot me if ya dont like it! [/ QUOTE ] Personally...I'd drop it. The consequences would be much worse not too mention additional charges, convictions, fines, fees, court surcharges, time if jail, conviction record....the officer says drop it...right or wrong...drop it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
natethebowhunter Posted March 25, 2007 Report Share Posted March 25, 2007 Re: Police encounter with hunter leads to ............ [ QUOTE ] Id NEVER drop my bow..officer or not..I'll lower it down.. shoot me if ya dont like it! [/ QUOTE ] gotta say that again!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buckee Posted March 25, 2007 Author Report Share Posted March 25, 2007 Re: Police encounter with hunter leads to ............ [ QUOTE ] [ QUOTE ] Id NEVER drop my bow..officer or not..I'll lower it down.. shoot me if ya dont like it! [/ QUOTE ] Personally...I'd drop it. The consequences would be much worse not too mention additional charges, convictions, fines, fees, court surcharges, time if jail, conviction record....the officer says drop it...right or wrong...drop it. [/ QUOTE ] Gotta go with swampy here. Besides the possible charges etc., you just never know how this police officer is going to react to your attitude. You might not live to see another bow. If you know you've done nothing wrong thus far, why push it Besides, if you know you've done nothing wrong, just think to yourself as the bow hits the ground..."well, it looks like I'll be getting that new bow after all" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Swamphunter Posted March 25, 2007 Report Share Posted March 25, 2007 Re: Police encounter with hunter leads to ............ [ QUOTE ] [ QUOTE ] [ QUOTE ] Id NEVER drop my bow..officer or not..I'll lower it down.. shoot me if ya dont like it! [/ QUOTE ] Personally...I'd drop it. The consequences would be much worse not too mention additional charges, convictions, fines, fees, court surcharges, time if jail, conviction record....the officer says drop it...right or wrong...drop it. [/ QUOTE ] Gotta go with swampy here. Besides the possible charges etc., you just never know how this police officer is going to react to your attitude. You might not live to see another bow. If you know you've done nothing wrong thus far, why push it Besides, if you know you've done nothing wrong, just think to yourself as the bow hits the ground..."well, it looks like I'll be getting that new bow after all" [/ QUOTE ] Replacing a $1000.00 bow is a minor issue for a police agency. Even small agencies have budgets of well over $1,000,000 a year...$1000.00 is a drop in the hat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravin R10 man Posted March 26, 2007 Report Share Posted March 26, 2007 Re: Police encounter with hunter leads to ............ Sorry..its comin down without me..nobody gonna get hurt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest IllinoisMackDaddyHunter Posted March 26, 2007 Report Share Posted March 26, 2007 Re: Police encounter with hunter leads to ............ that is just like a cop, to think he knows the whole situation. they need an butt-kicking sometimes. Someone would for sure pay for the damage to my bow. keep your head up man and good luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buckee Posted March 26, 2007 Author Report Share Posted March 26, 2007 Re: Police encounter with hunter leads to ............ [ QUOTE ] that is just like a cop, to think he knows the whole situation. they need an butt-kicking sometimes. Someone would for sure pay for the damage to my bow. keep your head up man and good luck. [/ QUOTE ] I guess you don't know too many cops then They are taught (for a very good reason) to expect the worst when responding to calls involving firearms. And they certainly don't need their butts kicked, because they already get that day in the day out on the job, but they are human being just like you and me, and they screw up sometimes, just like you and me. Sure there's some bad cops out there, but don't put them all in the same basket. They, as a whole, deserve more respect than that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nut Posted March 26, 2007 Report Share Posted March 26, 2007 Re: Police encounter with hunter leads to ............ I always do what a LEO says even if they are wrong. I don't trust them not to overreact since they deal with people who are not like me. Peaceful and loving in nature. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtnhunt Posted March 26, 2007 Report Share Posted March 26, 2007 Re: Police encounter with hunter leads to ............ [ QUOTE ] Sorry..its comin down without me..nobody gonna get hurt. [/ QUOTE ] Yeah, same here. Officer says drop it, wrong or not, I am dropping it. Not worth getting shot and leaving my children behind without me over a bow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robinhood Posted March 26, 2007 Report Share Posted March 26, 2007 Re: Police encounter with hunter leads to ............ [ QUOTE ] [ QUOTE ] [ QUOTE ] [ QUOTE ] Id NEVER drop my bow..officer or not..I'll lower it down.. shoot me if ya dont like it! [/ QUOTE ] Personally...I'd drop it. The consequences would be much worse not too mention additional charges, convictions, fines, fees, court surcharges, time if jail, conviction record....the officer says drop it...right or wrong...drop it. [/ QUOTE ] Gotta go with swampy here. Besides the possible charges etc., you just never know how this police officer is going to react to your attitude. You might not live to see another bow. If you know you've done nothing wrong thus far, why push it Besides, if you know you've done nothing wrong, just think to yourself as the bow hits the ground..."well, it looks like I'll be getting that new bow after all" [/ QUOTE ] Replacing a $1000.00 bow is a minor issue for a police agency. Even small agencies have budgets of well over $1,000,000 a year...$1000.00 is a drop in the hat. [/ QUOTE ] amen idk if i would drop my bow 30ft. but yeah i do like the fact knowing hey. i get a new bow now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bowin_in_illinois Posted March 26, 2007 Report Share Posted March 26, 2007 Re: Police encounter with hunter leads to ............ [ QUOTE ] [ QUOTE ] that is just like a cop, to think he knows the whole situation. they need an butt-kicking sometimes. Someone would for sure pay for the damage to my bow. keep your head up man and good luck. [/ QUOTE ] I guess you don't know too many cops then They are taught (for a very good reason) to expect the worst when responding to calls involving firearms. And they certainly don't need their butts kicked, because they already get that day in the day out on the job, but they are human being just like you and me, and they screw up sometimes, just like you and me. Sure there's some bad cops out there, but don't put them all in the same basket. They, as a whole, deserve more respect than that. [/ QUOTE ] I don't think this is a case of "bad cop", maybe just ignorance. He was in a situation he wasn't familiar with, and didn't understand, and handled it in the safest way he could think of. We as bowhunters think it is ridiculous, but to someone who doesn't know anything about it, a guy in a tree with a weapon would be a scary thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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