You be the jury: Should accidental cat killer be charged with crime?

When Dori first built his backyard fish pond, he fell
in love with his pet goldfish (Koi were too expensive and
too much trouble.) So he was pretty disturbed to see a
neighbor cat fishing for food, especially as the fish kept
disappearing. And after chasing the cat away, only to see
it back the next day, he had enough.

“I got my least lethal gun, a pellet gun. I didn’t want
to penetrate the skin. I didn’t want to lodge a pellet
inside the cat. I wanted to hurt the cat and I wanted it
to associate fishing at my pond with pain.”

Dori pumped just enough air into the pistol and hit the
cat with a single shot. It didn’t seem to injure it, but
was enough to scare it away, says Dori.

He tells the story because he can feel for a Centralia
man now facing criminal charges for shooting and killing a
neighbor cat with an air rifle.

Listen to
Should accidental cat killer be charged?

Centralia City Council member and pastor Bill Bates
told the Lewis County Sirens he was
trying to scare it out of his yard because “he was tired
of the animal walking on his clean cars and messing in his
beauty bark.”

“I understand if he was trying to shoot at his feet
because I’ve been there, I have done what this guy did but
I didn’t kill the animal,” says Dori.

While the owner is heartbroken and outraged, Bates has
been charged with unlawful use of an air gun and willfully
or recklessly killing or injuring a pet. He faces up to
six months in jail and a $5,000 fine.

“If it’s crapping in his yard and digging up his flower
beds and walking on his clean cars, does a person have a
right to deal with it as this guy did?” asks Dori.

Our listeners have very mixed feelings about whether
Bates should even be charged, let alone punished:

“Would it make a difference for people if the guy
that killed the cat did it with a rock that he threw
instead of a BB gun?” -Scott in Rochester

“I shot a neighbors cat with a pelletgun because it
was coming into our yard and killing the wild (ground
nesting Junco’s)birds. I have shot at the same cat for
pooping in the middle of my lawn. I have also shot at
raccoons with it…I’m very happy with my pellet gun and
will continue to use it as needed. I have never seiously
injured the cat or raccoons. Also, my next option is to
set a live trap and take the cat to the pound. Which is
worse?” – Julie in Bothell

“No way should the pastor go to Jail.. She should
keep her cat home. We have to keep our dogs home. Cats
should be held to the same standard.” -Jerri in
Graham

“So if your dog is ever in my yard, say he’s
chasing a squirrel (a squirrel I feed on my deck daily) I
can shoot your dog with a pellet gun?? I assume its ok
since you feel you can shoot my cat (if I had one).
Shooting ANYONE’s pet is not OK Dori. That animal is
someone else’s property!… Oh wait, its OK if YOU do it.
Lame Dori.” – Adam in Edmonds

“He should not go to jail! She should be
repramanded for allowing her animal to run free. If a dog
runs free they can take it to the pound and fine the
owner. ” – Cainon-Graham

“That cat was someone’s loved one! Couldn’t he have
spoken to the woman first so she could have the chance to
keep the cat indoors? I would be heartbroken if my kitty
was shot and I would’ve gone after the culprit too. You
are fair on most subjects Dori, but my opinion is that you
are not being very fair here. Animals are living creatures
too. ” – Deb in Renton

“I think that shooting at any animal with a pellet
gun or air rifle is intending to do some pretty decent
harm to them. pellet guns fire lead projectiles which can
be pointed or in some cases hollow points. I could maybe
see shooting at a neighbors annoying pet with an air soft
gun because people shoot each other with those and they
arent made to kill anything. But a pellet gun is too
much.” – Taylor in Bellingham