but that daycare center had big ol antlers, i swear..

[Guest guest]

December 17, 2008 - 5:04am

CLARKSVILLE, Md. (AP) - An Ellicott City man was charged with negligent hunting

for allegedly shooting a shotgun slug through a window at a daycare center in a

case that has raised questions about safety zones, the state Department of

Natural Resources said Tuesday.

 

Richard V. Hoenes Jr., 41, didn't immediately return a telephone call from The

Associated Press seeking comment on the charge filed against him Monday by the

state Natural Resources Police.

 

Hoenes was hunting deer on private property more than 270 yards from the

occupied daycare center in Clarksville when he fired a round that shattered a

window in the building Dec. 10, police said.

 

State law and a Howard County ordinance prohibit hunting with firearms within

150 yards of occupied dwellings or churches without permission. Even if hunters

are outside the statutory safety zone, they must be aware of what lies beyond

their target before firing, said Paul Peditto, director of the DNR's Wildlife

and Heritage Service.

 

The incident was the second such episode in Maryland this season. On Nov. 29,

two bullets hit a home near Williamsport , resulting in negligent hunting

charges against Rodney Harne, 19, of Williamsport . One bullet entered the home

through a window and the other broke a garage window. Harne was also more than

150 yards from the home, police say.

 

No one was hurt in either incident.

 

The daycare shooting prompted Howard County Executive Ken Ulman to seek a change

in the county's ordinance to expand the safety zone. And state Delegate

Elizabeth Bobo, D-Howard, said last week that she would ask DNR Secretary John

R. Griffin to explain how the shooting occurred, given the safety zone.

 

Peditto said Tuesday that rather than seeking a change in state law, county

officials should first consider banning firearm discharges in areas where

development has made hunting with guns inappropriate.

" We're willing to continue working with the counties regarding their concerns

raised by these unfortunate circumstances, but because both of these individuals

have been charged with negligent hunting, it does beg the question whether

changing the words in the law book would change the outcome and/or the

behavior, " Peditto said.

 

Hoenes is scheduled to appear in Howard County District Court Jan. 22, Sgt.

Kenneth Turner said.

 

Hoenes was charged with failing to report a deer kill within 24 hours, Turner

said.