Two Charleston County men were charged with night hunting for deer in an incident on Bonnie Doone Road near Ritter Road on Nov. 27.
Patrick Allen Ward, 39, of Moncks Corner and Lewis Merritt Smith, 40, of Hanahan were charged in the incident.
According to the S.C. Dept. of Natural Resources officer, he was on routine patrol, sitting on the power line that crosses Bonnie Doone Road about .8 miles south from Ritter Road about 3:30 a.m. He said he heard what appeared to be three consecutive gunshots and started driving toward Ritter Road.
About 300 yards from Ritter Road, the officer said he found a dead male white-tailed deer with several gunshot wounds. The body was still warm and bleeding.
About five minutes later, the officer reported, a burgundy Ford F150 driven by Ward turned onto Bonnie Doone Road, passed his location and stopped by the deer. The officer reportedly heard the tailgate open and close.
When the driver saw the officer’s headlights come on, he “took off at a high rate of speed on Ritter Road toward Green Pond Highway.” The officer activated his lights and siren, but the truck continued until stopping on Bowman Lane.
The two men and two juveniles were in the truck.
Ward initially reportedly told the officer they didn’t shoot the deer, but saw it dead on the road and didn’t want it to go to waste. He allegedly said they were on their way to hunting property in Hendersonville from Charleston. The deputy questioned why they were on Bonnie Doone Road, as the road comes to a dead end. Ward said they went to Chessie Creek boat landing to see if anyone was hunting there, but the officer noted he had been stopped on Bonnie Doone Road since 2 a.m. and their vehicle hadn’t passed him.
Smith, the second suspect, also reportedly said they found the dead deer on the road.
After two other SCDNR officers arrived, Ward allegedly admitted he shot the deer because he wanted his son to see him kill a deer.
Ward’s written statement to the deputy said, “I was taking my kids hunting and decided to ride down Bonnie Doone Road to kill a little time before the morning hunt when I turned the corner and saw a deer limping across the road. I then grabbed my son’s 20 gauge shotgun and quickly loaded it and shot the deer. It was never my intention to do this; however, I got caught up in the moment. There was no lights used. I immediately felt bad about what I did and left the deer on the side of the road but decided to turn around and get it because I didn’t want it to go to waste.”
The two juveniles were picked up by a relative, while the two hunters got a visit to the Colleton County Detention Center. Ward was charged with night hunting deer, trespassing to hunt and possession of untagged deer. Smith was charged with night hunting and trespassing to hunt.
The F150 truck was confiscated, as well as a Ruger Mini 14, Seminole .12 gauge, Beretta .12 gauge, Taurus .243 rifle, Marlin .22 rifle, an unknown make .270 rifle and Remington .20 gauge shotgun. Ammunition seized included 74 shotgun shells, a box of .22 caliber shells with 20 rounds in the gun’s magazine, 18 rounds of .270 shells, 24 rounds .243 rounds, four .223 rounds and six 20-gauge shells (three spent.) Two streamlight and atomic beam flashlights were also confiscated.
The two men did not have to post bond and were released.
