Posted on 08/05/2005 1:03:26 PM PDT by Rebelbase
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Jason Williams keeps his gun — a .22-caliber squirrel-killer with a scope — propped by the sink.
He bags the varmints as they raid his pear tree and chomp his fig bush in his woodsy backyard just blocks from Crabtree Valley Mall. It's a family practice going back decades.
But newer neighbors do not cotton to Williams squirrel hunts. In a single July week, they called police three times.
"As it stands, I have fired four rounds, killed four squirrels and been visited by four police officers," said Williams, who is 41. "The first time, they SWAT-deployed. This is silly."
Hunting squirrels, rats and pigeons is perfectly legal in Raleigh yards provided you get a 90-day permit like the one Williams keeps taped to his front door.
The law dates to at least 1959, when Williams' Brookhaven neighborhood was outside city limits and the nearby mall was a cow pasture.
Granting special permits was a nod to people who thought they had a "plethora of pests," said City Attorney Thomas McCormick.
Times and neighborhoods have changed. Brookhaven might still be quiet and wooded, the sort of place where families spend eight or nine years and still are considered "new-ish."
But residents note that 80-plus townhouses are going up nearby, and Glenwood Avenue is one of the busiest streets in Raleigh.
"It certainly is far from rural," said Bee Weddington, who lives in the neighborhood. "I hate the squirrels, too, but I don't like guns. I'm not one of those crusaders, but there's always a chance you could harm some animal who's a pet, or a person, or a child."
Weddington, who is not one the neighborhood complainers, said legalized squirrel hunting surprised her. Only nine people have the permits citywide.
Williams, though, has a stack of permits dating back to the 1980s, when Brookhaven was annexed. When neighbors called the police, he sent them copies by registered mail.
The squeamishness about guns bothers him. By city law, he can use no rifle larger than a .22-caliber, and he must use rat shot, which will travel only about 25 feet.
"You could shoot your buddy in the (behind) with one and it would feel like a mosquito — if it cut through your pants," he said.
A forestry consultant, Williams has been hunting since age 5. He keeps his guns in a safe — including the rifle, when not actively pursuing varmints. He aims for animals on tree trunks so the round will strikes the bark if it misses the squirrel.
And rat shot, he says while demonstrating, can be fired from his rifle only one round at a time.
"You're not going to be bursting out in the back yard going 'Bam, bam, bam, bam. Oh, sorry Bob. I hit your head.' It's just impossible," he said.
So far this year, squirrels have torn through hundreds of pears he had been planning to can, scattering the rotten fruit across his yard.
He tried putting out deer corn for them, but they ate through a garbage can to get to a larger supply. He tried non-lethal have-a-heart traps, but he couldn't catch them.
If neighbors would ask, Williams said, he could show them that his hunting is responsible and safe.
"Yankees," said his girlfriend, Dawn Wiggins. "This isn't Brooklyn. Were not popping people over here. One he fired, I was sitting in the house, and I never even heard it."
The last time police visited, Williams said, the senior officer shook his head and walked away, cursing wasted time.
Williams feels for the police. There are criminals to catch, he said. Leave the varmints to him.
"You'll shoot yer eye out, kid."
Gotcha. No need to elaborate.
My wife and I are going to VA at the end of the month to see if its a viable move for us, we're from NY. From the looks of it, the slime that we're looking to leave behind is already there.
Thats a real bummer.
Reading, its fundamental
HUHlarious@!
Lots of great places to move to in VA, NC and SC...
Just remember the golden rule: Never say "The way we used to do it in New York", etc., 'cause we'll shoot y'all. (Just kiddin')
As I tried to point out earlier, and you apparently didn't get it, yes ATFE has a problem with silencers. No, its not legal to have one now without getting a "mother may I" from ATFE and paying your tax. That is a law that should be changed and this kind of thing (varmints) is the reason why. God Almighty didn't write "Thou shalt have no suppressors." Humans made the mistake of passing that law.
Sorry I didn't understand the ATFE thing. I knew that the BATF had objections. Just wanted to make it perfectly clear about the legality of silencers.
Good Hunting... from Varmint Al
What town?? My best friend lives in Killingworth and one of neighbors is always shooting the squirrels, possums, rabbits, whatever, that wander into his yard.
Now, whether he's doing it legally is another question.
Good luck to us to get that law changed. It was a bad idea at the time, and people react emotionally. Where I live the gun ranges are being attacked for noise. Doesn't matter that they were there long before the housing developments went in. Simple and cheap solution is to use suppresors. But, no, that's illegal. Catch-22.
It is called birdshot here in CA. Yes, it is a small shot shell for use in 22s and can be used against rats and other pests. If I was this guy I would invest in a really good pellet gun, one with good accuracy and that would solve the noise problem and his idiot neighbors would be unaware that he was still snuffing squirrels. He would benefit from greater range also(altho not much).
I knew a guy that tried using a .410 to shoot rats in his hen house. Didn't take him long to switch to .22 bird shot!
Agreed with one exception. He may have a smooth bore .22 made expressly for those loads. Otherwise, I've done the same as you with WW bird shot loads. The rifling in the barrel opens them into a pattern six feet wide at 10 feet.
Daisy Air Rifles: Keeping Kids Off Your Lawn Since 1886!
I bought a 22 cal Sheridan pump air rifle in about 1970 and my son and I were in the back yard shooting a target pinned to the fence. After a while a while my Red Neck neighbor yells from the other side of the fence that we were putting holes in his siding and that we should be shooting toward the "other" neighbor. That "Bee Bee" gun was shooting through a piece of 1/2 inch plywood and one inch fence boards...
.22 rat shot is a small amount of shot crimped into a .22 shell. It is also called bird shot. When you consider that 12 gauge birdshot is pretty much done in 100 yards, this stuff is good for busting balloons at the carnival. A .22 pellet gun would do the squirrel disposal job and would hardly notify the nearest neighbor.
He could try some of the Colibri subsonic .22s
no powder just the primer. very quiet.
I used to shoot down the hall in my trailor and the
neighbors never heard a thing.
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