REGIONAL- An 81-year-old Brainerd man faces a criminal citation after authorities say he shot at a black bear without a justifiable reason.
The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources cited Dwight Joseph Brown by mail with taking big game outside the legal hunting season, a gross misdemeanor.
According to the citation, law enforcement authorities received a report on July 3 of someone shooting at a bear in a neighborhood near North Long Lake, about 10 miles north of Brainerd.
DNR conservation officer Jim Guida responded and found no evidence the bear had caused any property damage. The animal was on someone else’s property and “not a substantial threat,” according to his report.
“Shooter indicated that the bear looked at him,” Guida wrote.
The bear wasn’t found, and authorities don’t know whether it was injured. A handgun and ammunition were seized as evidence, the report stated.
Reached by phone on Wednesday, Brown said he was driving a garden tractor into his garage when he spotted the bear standing by the edge of his driveway. He said he shot at the animal to scare it, but didn’t hit it, and the bear ran into the woods.
Brown said he lives “in the country” and there was no chance of him hitting other houses, but a neighbor yelled at him and called authorities.
“I’m not happy with my neighbor,” he said.
Minnesota law allows people to kill nuisance bears only in limited circumstances, such as when they’re causing significant property damage or posing an immediate danger to people or animals. Damage to bird feeders or unsecured garbage cans is not a legitimate reason.
In this case, there was no evidence the bear had damaged property or was behaving aggressively, Guida said in an interview.
“There was no evidence that showed that this bear did anything wrong, other than walk by the woods where it was living,” he said.
It’s not uncommon for Minnesotans to see black bears near homes, especially in spring and early summer when the animals are searching for food. To avoid conflicts, the DNR recommends removing food sources by keeping garbage cans inside and putting away birdfeeders.
“Once bears have a wild food source available, they often shy away from that interaction (with) the public,” Guida said. “They’d rather eat naturally produced food sources.”
Bear attacks on people are very rare. According to the DNR, there have been no fatal bear attacks in Minnesota. Most encounters involve bears attracted to food around homes or campsites.
The DNR only kills bears after determining they pose a public safety threat, which the agency says happens fewer than six times per year on average.
Guida said officers receive reports every year of people shooting at bears outside of the legal hunting season, though he suspects many incidents go unreported.
“It’s hard for me to understand why somebody would shoot something to have it run off into the woods and die,” he said.
Instead, Guida encourages people to treat black bears as they would white-tailed deer: admire them from a safe distance and let them move on.
“Take some pictures, retreat to your residence, shut the garage door,” he said. “Those kinds of things are good suggestions prior to going in and grabbing a firearm.”
MPR News stations can be found at 92.5FM on the Range and 89.3FM in Ely