Police arrested two men they say were trying to shoot deer from a car on a Cape Girardeau city street.
They were each charged with taking wildlife in violation of Missouri Department of Conservation guidelines.
Cape Girardeau police responded to calls around 9:30 p.m. Wednesday alerting them that someone was trying to shoot deer at the intersection of Bertling and Sprigg streets. The deer were on the campus of Southeast Missouri State University.
When police arrived at the intersection, they found two men in a red Geo Metro. The passenger, Joshua E. Dibert, 27, of 1105 Giboney Ave., had a .22-caliber rifle in his possession, according to a probable-cause statement by patrolman Jeffrey R. Bonham of the Cape Girardeau Police Department. The driver, Cody L. Roberts, 20, of 2829 Themis St., Apt. 4, told police Dibert had taken a couple of shots out the car window but missed.
Both men were escorted to the police station, where they gave statements saying they had been in Allenville earlier in the day shooting alligator gar and turtles in a creek, according to the probable-cause statement.
They had two .22-caliber rifles in the car when they spotted the deer, so Dibert fired two shots outside of the car and one from the passenger seat, Roberts told police.
The two men were charged with discharging a firearm on a public road, attempting to take wildlife with artificial light, hunting from a motor vehicle and attempting to take deer out of season. Roberts was also charged with driving with a suspended license. If found guilty, Roberts and Dibert could face up to a year in the county jail or a fine of up to $1,000.
It can be complicated when charging someone with wildlife offenses, because it involves researching Department of Conservation guidelines to find which ones have been violated, said Cape Girardeau County Prosecuting Attorney Morley Swingle.
Typically, when someone is charged with attempting to take wildlife with artificial light, it means that ambient lights are used to help the hunter locate the animal in the dark.
In this case, it was the streetlights on Sprigg Street that offered the ambient light.
"They were charged with taking deer by streetlight," Swingle said.
Roberts and Dibert are being held at the Cape Girardeau County Jail. Roberts is held on a $3,000 cash-only bond, Dibert on a $2,500 cash-only bond.
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