Posted on 04/21/2025 5:27:57 AM PDT by Puppage
CONNECTICUT — A man from Bethlehem said he was caught in a tough situation that involved self defense and breaking the law.
Todd Topicz exclusively told Channel 3 that was woken up in August by his pregnant wife after a bear came within feet of his two children.
“He walked right into the garage with people in there. He didn’t care. So, who knows what would’ve happened next time,” Topicz said.
He said that the bear entered the home through the garage, where the two kids were at the time.
The animal grabbed a few bags before being chased up a tree by his dog. When he realized the bear wasn’t backing down, he fired a few warning shots before the bear finally took off into the woods.
He said it wasn’t until the next day that he realized that he had unintentionally shot the bear.
A neighbor reported the dead bear to police and that’s when Topicz told them what happened. The Department of Energy and Environmental Protection arrested him two weeks later.
“DEEP contacted me and said hey since you shot the bear and killed it, we have to arrest you again and charge you again with illegal taking of a bear,” he said.
He said the arrest confused him.
A 2023 law outlines when a person can legally kill a bear, specifying that a person can kill a bear in self defense if they reasonably believe that the animal is about to inflict bodily harm to a human, injure or kill a person’s pet, or enters a building occupied by persons.
Topicz said he felt that his situation met the criteria.
“We were all threatened. It entered our home. And I have no idea why DEEP ended up charging me for this,” he said.
Senator Eric Bethel, who represents Bethlehem, said that he supports a resident’s rights to defend themselves and that similar situations are a public safety issue.
DEEP said that it would not comment on the case.
Topicz said he is doing an accelerated rehabilitation program for first time offenders. As long as he completes it, no charges will be filed.
“Topicz said he is doing an accelerated rehabilitation program for first time offenders. As long as he completes it, no charges will be filed.”
IOW: DEI training, leftist indoctrination
The law is wrong in this case. Very wrong. The man had the right to protect his family.
Bugs and birds are higher than humans in the leftist hierarchy, I’m unclear why he is surprised. What did he expect?
Agreed, why is this not an open and shut case of self defense just like if an armed human intruder breaches a home?
Pennsylvania is jacked up. SMH
“IOW: DEI training, leftist indoctrination”
It’s a program you have to pay for. It’s free for blacks, but whites have to pay cash, enough so they can give it away free to blacks. (This from a discussion with an attorney.)
The program is usually inappropriate to the white “offender” but it’s about the stats...having too many blacks and too few whites and paying the bills.
Victim unavailable for comment.
If the bear had left the home, then the threat was gone. No sense shooting it then. In the garage? Go ahead and shoot it.
Why isn’t that discriminatory pricing?
If the bear was happy with his takings, he would have been back for more. That’s why, when a bear enters a campground at a national park and gets some food, the rangers there get some target practice. There is simply NO WAY to negotiate boundaries with a bear, they WILL NOT LISTEN, no matter what the animal rights type claim.
Another liberal state. Pander to illegals, support them, let them off without any jail, without any bail, free to commit more crimes. But don’t shoot a bear that is obviously not afraid to enter your garage with children, unless you are here illegally, of course.
It is insane, if you ask me. Despite whinings from animal loving leftists, say BEARS do Kill. It’s happened twice here in Georgia, IIRC.
He “accidentally” shot the bear. Right...
Disagree. Once the bear has lost its fear of humans it needs to be killed.
Next time it came back it might be starving.
Please don’t let me look at Facebook on this. “They were here before us.”
But “warning shots”? Did he say that with a straight face?
I would say if he fired in the air not intending to hit something, he should be arrested. But he intended to shoot the bear.
I concur.
The bear was shot while in the tree.
The bear was almost certainly a juvenile that was in effect, lost
No good deed goes unpunished..................
“Unintentionally shot the bear” does not seem to support a self defense claim.
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