ORLANDO, Fla. (AP)—PGA Tour golfer Tripp Isenhour was charged with killing a hawk on purpose with a golf shot because it was making noise as he videotaped a TV show
Isenhour was with a film crew for “Shoot Like A Pro” on Dec. 12 at the Grand Cypress Golf course. The 39-year-old golfer, whose real name is John Henry Isenhour III, was charged Wednesday with cruelty to animals and killing a migratory bird.
The charges carry a maximum penalty of 14 months in jail and $1,500 in fines.
According to court documents, Isenhour got upset when a red-shouldered hawk began making noise, forcing another take. He began hitting balls at the bird, then 300 yards away, but gave up.
Isenhour started again when the hawk moved within about 75 yards, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officer Brian Baine indicated in a report.
Isenhour allegedly said “I’ll get him now,” and aimed for the hawk.
“About the sixth ball came very near the bird’s head, and (Isenhour) was very excited that it was so close,” Baine wrote.
A few shots later, witnesses said he hit the hawk. The bird, protected as a migratory species, fell to the ground bleeding from both nostrils.
Isenhour’s agent, John Mascatello with SFX World Sports Management, did not immediately return an e-mail or telephone message Thursday.
“He just kept saying how he didn’t think he could have hit it, which I think is a stupid thing for a PGA Tour golfer to say,” said Jethro Senger, a sound engineer at the shoot. “He can put a ball in a hole from hundreds of yards away, and here he is hitting line drives at something that’s, I don’t know, a couple hundred feet away?”
Senger said it was “basically like a joke to (Isenhour).” He said no one in the roughly 15-person crew intervened, and many later regretted it.
“It was one of those cases where there’s some trepidation on whether or not they should speak up and do something,” Senger said.
Senger said the killing was not captured on video. The bird was buried at the golf course and later dug up by Florida investigators.
Isenhour, of Salisbury, N.C., turned pro in 1990. He had two wins on the Nationwide Tour in 2006.
What an ass. I mean to just stand there and hit at the thing til you kill it for absolutely no reason other than you are an ass and a sorry excuse for a human. Shoot like a pro indeed.
10 comments:
As unnecessary as it was, I just can't get worked about about that. Personally I hate birds. He'll probably get a stiffer penalty than if he had hit a human with a golf ball.
Birds slam into glass windows all the time and die from the impact. Whatcha gonna do? Sue the window?
Big Whoop.
I don't see how a person could not get worked up about this. One of the things that sets us part from animals is that we do not needlessly kill them. Hell, not even animals needlessly kill each other.
Shouldn't he get a higher fine than if he had hit a human who was disrupting his work? Humans take action and this has consequences, we don't hold animals to the same standard. The bird was not doing anything wrong.
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Realist, you should either leave the humor to the pros if that's what you were going for there, or change your moniker to Clueless.
Jacob, I think you got it wrong: One of the things that sets us part from animals is that we (some of us at least) DO needlessly kill them.
I agree, though, that he should be punished harder than for hitting a human. A human probably would have a bump for a few days, while the hawk died.
He didn't kill it for "absolutely no reason." He killed it because it was interfering with what he wanted to do.
I don't really approve of what he did, but I strongly disapprove of criminal prosecution for it.
With people being murdered left and right yesterday, Angus singles out this guy for A-hole awards?! Get some context, Angus.
Wow, I'm no animal rights fanatic, but this guy is an a-hole. The demeanor it requires to spend that much time trying to kill something is ugly. A real sportsman doesn't take a shot at something unless he knows he will hit it with the first shot, so he's no sportsman. It's more like the kid-bully who gets his jollies by pulling the cat's tail.
Criminal act? Well, who's bird was it? So we've got a property rights issue, because no one owned the bird. But if we follow good law and economics, this guy is one who most certainly ought not to be awarded ownership of any animal. I mean, think of how many golf balls are wasted!
Tom,
Well said as usual. In case there was any question... I don't want to pay for prosecuting this kind of stuff.
BR
Given the typically compassionate, well reasoned comments that I encounter on KPC, I am surprised by some of the callous comments regarding this issue. First, I don't read anywhere in the post that Angus is calling for the death penalty for this guy; he seems to just be pointing out how big of a jerk he is. The complete disregard for life in this instance is truly disturbing. For sheer amusement this man kills an innocent animal, a protected species at that. Does it really matter that is was a bird? Aside from the obvious property rights issues, from a moralistic perspective would the act have been more/less heinous had he killed a different animal, perhaps someone's pet puppy or kitten?
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