Police say a driver who ran over the beloved Sullivan’s Pond geese Wednesday evening—killing two of the animals and injuring a third—won’t be facing any charges.
The incident occurred just before 6pm at the Prince Albert Road crosswalk near Elliot Street.
According to a press release from Halifax Regional Police, one goose died at the scene. Another was taken to the vet, where it passed away.
The third goose continued swimming to the Sullivan’s Pond island. Its condition is currently being monitored by volunteers.
While a flurry of social media posts by alleged witnesses have claimed the hit-and-run was intentional, police say the male driver didn’t see the geese before striking them.
“Witnesses confirm that speed was not a factor in this incident,” HRP’s press release states. “No charges have been laid.”
The pond’s domestic white geese are iconic mascots of Dartmouth. They’ve been a visible presence in and around Sullivan’s Pond for decades.
So the news that two of the nine remaining geese were killed by a careless driver has naturally been met with extreme emotion.
People are livid.
By coincidence, earlier in the same day Halifax Regional Police and district RCMP released the department’s most-recent monthly vehicle/pedestrian collision stats.
There were 20 pedestrians struck by cars in June. That’s double the number of collisions in May and an increase of seven from the same time last year.
In the first six months of 2017 there have been 104 vehicle/pedestrian collisions in HRM, 68 percent of which occurred in crosswalks.
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Citizen Gus
This article appears in Aug 3-9, 2017.
This does not jive with what eyewitnesses stated they saw. Another example of our failed justice system.
Really sad to hear this……….in my opinion another case of no accountability for reckless actions…maybe not criminal but reckless at least
Didnt see three huge white birds in a crosswalk… would this person have seen three kids crossing, or would they have run them over too?
Worst news to wake up to, if speed wasn’t a factor then how come 2 of them died? I am so upset, I once got out of my van and shoeed them along to the other side because people were getting mad at how long they were taking on crossing… charges must be laid, or some other idiot will do the same thing knowing they will get away
Eyewitnesses have put a lot of innocent people in jail. When emotions are involved, the mind doesn’t always record things exactly as they took place.
Driver did not see them my ass! How could you not see 3 geese on the road if you are paying attention to where you are going!! And did this person not keep going? I know if I hit something, I would definitely feel it!!
One can assume this driver would also not have seen a child on the road. Open your eyes!
I have launched a petition for this
https://www.change.org/p/mike-savage-motor…
What they taught us in Drivers Ed, If it is smaller than the hood, it’s a Squishy and you don’t stop for it. Sounds horrible but you don’t stop in the middle of the road for a small animal, doing so increases the chances for accidents and people getting hurt.
I agree 100%. I was almost killed by some stopping for ducks while driving a motorcycle.