Towns County fire chief-coroner under investigation after killing wild hog
News July 19, 2019
HIAWASSEE, Ga. – The United States Forest Service (USFS) informed FetchYourNews (FYN) Friday, July 19, that an active investigation has been launched due to an incident which occurred outside of a local Firewise Communities meeting Tuesday, July 16, involving a fatal encounter between a wild hog and Towns County Fire Chief-Coroner Harold Copeland.
Firewise Communities – a coalition which includes local, state, and federal fire managers – held its regular meeting Tuesday evening at Towns County Fire Station 6, located off State Route 288. The county fire station is situated on federal land within the boundaries of the Oconee-Chattahoochee National Forest.
According to individuals in attendance, gunfire erupted outside of the fire station as the meeting took place, the result of Fire Chief-Coroner Copeland’s decision to shoot a wild hog that had wandered toward an undisclosed area beside the facility. A member of Towns County Fire and Rescue stated that the hog’s carcass had been removed from the area and disposed of by the department at Copeland’s request.
FYN spoke with Copeland July 18, offering an opportunity to explain the situation. Copeland stated that Towns County Clerk of Court Cecil Dye had given the chief-coroner permission to shoot wild hogs on the court clerk’s property, an area which borders the federal land. “I killed it in the woods,” Copeland told FYN. “It was on Cecil Dye’s land.” Dye confirmed with FYN that he had, in fact, given Copeland permission to hunt “invasive hogs” on his property in the past.
While it is unknown if the dually appointed fire chief-elected coroner will be charged with a violation, hunting out-of-season on federal land and discharging a firearm within 150 yards of a residence, building, campsite, developed recreation site, or occupied area is illegal in the Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forest.
UPDATED: Wild hogs may be taken on forest service land with archery equipment during archery deer season, with deer weapons during firearms deer season, with turkey weapons during turkey season, and with small game weapons during small game season. There are no restrictions on private property, however.
FYN will continue to follow developments, reporting updated information as it becomes available.
3 Comments
The man killed a wild hog. Only crime he committed in.my view was not eating it.
Mesnwhile, how many unborn baby humans have been murdered in abortion clinics and nothing done or said about them. Whatva completely messed up country this is now.
There is no season on wild hog and as long as he had permission, which he did, there was nothing wrong with what happened. This is senseless propaganda and trying to make something out of nothing. It’s pretty obvious what’s happening with this situation. This isn’t about a wild hog at all.
Nothing wrong here.