From New York Department of Environmental Conservation
On Dec. 14, Environmental Conservation Officers (ECO)s charged three Vermont residents for their alleged roles in a shooting incident in Washington County in November 2024.
Vermont Game Wardens and State Police investigated and determined that on Nov. 30, the trio drove through the town of Salem in search of a deer to shoot. Once they spotted a buck, the driver attempted to shoot the animal from the vehicle but pulled the firearm back inside when a truck pulled up behind the car. The rifle discharged inside the vehicle and a bullet went through the driver’s hand and out the door of the vehicle.
The group drove back to Vermont and reported the incident, claiming it occurred in that state. After an investigation, the shooter admitted the incident happened in New York and Vermont law enforcement turned all the information over to ECO Krug.
ECO Krug and Investigator Panipinto interviewed the three subjects and arrested the shooter, a convicted felon, for criminal possession of a weapon, hunting without a license, possession of a loaded gun in a motor vehicle, discharging a firearm over a highway, and discharging a firearm within 500 feet of a farm structure. The shooter spent five days at Albany Medical Center recovering from his injuries. The other two subjects received a total of seven tickets for charges related to the shooting.
