PETERSBURG – Alaska Wildlife Troopers filed charges against two Petersburg teens who allegedly hit multiple deer with a truck last week, filmed it, and then uploaded it to social media.
The teens, 17-year-old Sebastian R. Davis and 17-year-old Jasmine C. Ohmer, were charged on Monday with harassing game, a misdemeanors, according to court documents. Davis was charged with reckless driving as well.
The charges stem from a video taken last week that emerged on Snapchat, a social media app. The video shows a truck traveling southbound on Wrangell Avenue in Petersburg. Ohmer filmed straight ahead from the passenger seat, as Davis, the alleged driver, approached and hit two deer walking alongside the road in a single file line. There appears to be laughter, while one voice says: “I got two of those [expletive].”
Alaska Wildlife Trooper Cody Litster started investigating the incident when he received the video on February 7. Litster interviewed Ohmer, who said the deer ran through a yard after the vehicle had struck them. Hitting the deer was an accident, she said, her idea and the intent was to scare the animals away, according to court documents. Davis, too, said they wanted to scare the deer away.
Ohmer also said they hit a third deer the following day on Sandy Beach Road, and afterward it laid down for a minute and then walked toward the beach.
Later in his investigation, Litster interviewed residents in the area of the incidents. One resident reported seeing a small deer limping on Wrangell Avenue on Monday. The deer reportedly had a chunk of hair missing from its backside. Another resident reported a dead deer on Sandy Beach Road.
As of press time this week, the apparent deer that were filmed had not been found, Litster said. There will be an arraignment hearing in this case on February 26 at 3:15 p.m.
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