I just heard (at 1225 hours) that the trucker involved will be charged for discharging a rifle on a public highway (I'll have to check the exact charge).

Massachusetts is a screwy place.

Here is the root story:

Errant bison buffaloes motorists on I-495
By Jack Encarnacao, Globe Correspondent  |  September 9, 2004

And you thought you had a bad commute yesterday. Motorists on Interstate 495 near Westborough at around 1 p.m. faced a daunting addition to the normal gantlet of obstacles on the busy roadway: an oncoming buffalo.

The large beast wandered in the direction of traffic in the northbound lane after escaping the trailer that had been transporting it, turning the well-traveled highway into a road where the buffalo roamed, however briefly.

Alerted to the bison's escape by the frantic beeping of passing drivers, the buffalo's owner, Brian C. Farmer, of Warner, N.H., shot the animal before it could cause an accident, State Police said.

Police said that Farmer's pickup had been towing three bison in a livestock trailer when a door to one of the trailer's three pens opened and one of the animals tumbled out.

As State Trooper Donna Losardo ordered gawking motorists back into their cars and stopped traffic, Farmer fired two tranquilizer shots, killing the errant buffalo.

Farmer had picked up the three bison yesterday morning after purchasing them at the Eastover Resort in Lenox, which keeps three dozen of the large bovids for sightseeing safari tours during the summer months, said John Kelly, an owner of the resort.

Kelly said one of the animals Farmer had purchased was nicknamed "Houdini" for its constant efforts to escape.

"The one that he got is an escape artist and that's why he went," Kelly said.

It was unclear yesterday whether Houdini was the buffalo that had left the trailer.

The two other animals were apparently unaffected by the incident.

Howard Mann, owner of the Alta Vista Buffalo Farm in Rutland, said a buffalo would not panic finding itself surrounded by moving cars on a highway and would not know to avoid the speeding vehicles, raising the possibility of a dangerous collision between a vehicle and an animal that usually weighs between 1,000 and 1,800 pounds.

A tow truck from Ted's Towing removed the corpse of the buffalo from the highway and brought it to the company's headquarters in Southborough, where Farmer retrieved the animal, said Peter Aspesi, owner of Ted's Towing.

By all indications, the highway incident sped up the buffalo's demise only slightly.

"They were going to the slaughterhouse," Aspesi said.



© Copyright 2004 The New York Times Company

www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2004/09/09/errant_bison_buffaloes_motorists_on_i_495?mode=PF

Quoted: I just heard (at 1225 hours) that the trucker involved will be charged for discharging a rifle on a public highway.......... As State Trooper Donna Losardo ordered gawking motorists back into their cars and stopped traffic, Farmer fired two tranquilizer shots, killing the errant buffalo.

Is a tranq gun a "firearm" under Mass law?

Is a tranq gun a "firearm" under Mass law?
If the barrel is long enough, it is a "rifle" under Mass law.  Handguns are "firearms."  Unlike federal law, no chemical reaction is required to qualify as a "firearm, rifle, or shotgun"; an air rifle or pistol might be treated the same as an ordinary rifle or pistol.

There are exceptions for BB guns, but it required judges to make this exception prior to amendments to the laws.

I told you this was a screwy place.  I'm going to follow up on this story.

What were they going to do, wait for it to get back into the truck. The Westboro section of 495 is a major intersection of Rte90 (Mass Pike) and Rte9, all 3 are heavily traveled roads. A buffalo running around that area would have tied up traffic for thousands of people, not to mention putting them in danger.

I also wonder if they are going to go after him on charges an un-licensed person in possession of a firearm - Felony, 1yr minimum mandatory, no parole, no deal, sentence.

I'd like to know which DA was the ass that filed charges.

Quoted: I'd like to know which DA was the ass that filed charges.

I bet he or she is affilated with PETA in some way.

Remember the Alamo, and God Bless Texas...

tonight after i get home from work...

i'll write a couple of stories from the farm....

one includes a 2000lb brangus bull...(ex rodeo stock), an open top stock trailer...and a stop light in town.


the other includes...

our experiences with the mighty bison....one big bad mother we had...

Update:  On September 18, it was reported that the driver -- Brian C. Farmer -- was to be charged with failure to secure his load.  The state police evidently had determined that he was properly licensed to possess a firearm.

I have an interesting story aboiut the police and a moose later on.

I'll keep checking on this.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
Man who shot buffalo charged by state police
By Kristen Bradley / News Staff Writer
Thursday, September 16, 2004

WESTBOROUGH -- The New Hampshire man who dropped his buffalo on Interstate 495 in Westborough last week and then shot it dead was cited yesterday by the Massachusetts State Police, and more charges could be filed once the investigation is complete.

    Trooper Tom Ryan said Brian C. Farmer, 31, of Warner, N.H., would be charged with failure to secure his load, a civil motor vehicle infraction.

    In addition, Ryan said the investigation into the circumstances surrounding the use of Farmer's firearm is ongoing.

    "The issues involving the transportation, possession and discharge of (Farmer's) firearm are still under investigation," Ryan said. "Basically what we do when we have something that doesn't appear to be cut and dry, we consult with the district attorney's office to make determinations on legal issues."

    Ryan said he expects the investigation to be wrapped up by the end of today.

    According to Ryan, Farmer was traveling on I-495 on Sept. 8 when the livestock trailer he was towing behind his pickup truck gave way, the latch to the trailer burst open and the bull fell out onto the highway.

    Unaware of what had happened, Farmer kept driving until passing motorists started alerting him to the 1,000-pound bull standing in the middle of the highway.

    Farmer stopped his car, pulled over and tried to get the buffalo off the roadway. When state police Trooper Donna Losardo arrived at the scene, she instructed the group of motorists who had stopped to help to get back into their cars, citing safety concerns on the open highway.

    At that time, the buffalo started walking toward Losardo and the crowd of people who had stopped to help.

    That's when Farmer pulled his rifle from the car and shot the buffalo twice, killing it.

    The three buffalos were on their way to Farmer's market to be slaughtered.

    Since the incident, state police have been investigating, trying to determine if Farmer lawfully possessed, carried and discharged his rifle.

   
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www.milforddailynews.com/localRegional/view.bg?articleid=55805&format=text

the law is the law and so on

yea.  a 6" peice of tie wire would have secured the lock on that trailer.