http://www.islandpacket.com/news/local/story/461430.html


"A Bluffton official was fined about $820 and suspended from work for two weeks for allegedly shooting and killing a kitten near his Verdier Cove Road home, according to authorities.

Frank Hodge, director of the town's new Department of Building Safety, was cited for malicious injury to an animal and discharging a firearm within town limits in the April 15 incident, according to a Bluffton police report.

Mud Pie, the 7-month-old kitten, and owner Amy Longley were sharing a ham sandwich on Longley's porch when her phone rang around noon that day, Longley said in an interview Thursday. She said Mud Pie started chasing a butterfly across the lawn when she got up to answer the phone.

Minutes later, while still on the phone, Longley said she heard three gunshots. She hung up to check on Mud Pie.

When she crossed the street, Longley found her kitten dead -- shot once in the chest and once in the neck, according to the report.

Longley buried the kitten in the yard of her home at 48 Verdier Cove Road later that afternoon.

Longley said neighbors told her that Hodge shot Mud Pie because he thought the animal was sick.

Hodge told neighbors he left his home for a meeting after the shooting and that he had planned to "deal with it later," the report stated.

Longley said Mud Pie -- named for her affinity for frolicking in the dirt -- had not been sick and was certainly not rabid.

"What gives him the authority to make that call?" Longley said. "This is 2008."

Frank Hodge, 62, did not return phone calls Thursday. Attempts to talk to him at his home on 55 Verdier Cove Road also were unsuccessful.

Dr. Cal Sharp, Hodge's neighbor, said Hodge dealt with what he thought might have been a rabid animal in a way that he thought was appropriate.

"It's the way things in the past have been dealt with," Sharp said. "But it's 2008. It's not the way things are done anymore."

Sharp said Hodge has been a good neighbor and belongs to wildlife and hunting groups. Hodge owns several cats and dogs, Sharp said.

"He made an unfortunate mistake," Sharp said.

Bluffton town manager Bill Workman said Hodge "showed a significant lack of good judgment."

Workman said Hodge will undergo mandatory counseling through the town's Employee Assistance Program.

Hodge was fined $257.50 for discharging a firearm in town limits and $562 for malicious injury to an animal, according to Bluffton Municipal Court records.

Those fines were paid April 22.

Sandy Lesch, manager for Bluffton's Department of Building Safety, said the incident -- and Hodge's two-week suspension -- will not affect the new department's operations.

"We'll keep going right along," she said in an interview at her office Thursday. "

another reason why i hate pigs.

Pigs ???? If that is a derogatory term for Police, then perhaps you didn't read the article ? The person who killed the kitten was NOT a policeman but a private individual ?

Meow Purr.

I don't know what would have caused this man to think the kitten was rabid...I've seen kittens trying to catch butterfly's and it's amusing to watch...Between the swatting, jumping, and falling over on their backs, it's quite funny...Bad call on this guy's judgement, and why he didn't go to the neighbor first is beyond me....

Ships makes a great point... Also as a lawyer I've met some great policemen. Also I've read the article and never did it much mention ant specific policemen...

He probably saw a fun target to shoot at and for the fun of it he shot the kitten. A rabbid kitten!? Good grief. What a lame excuse.

A lawyer? Hisssss booooo hisss lol j/k

Since he's head of the Department of Building Safety , I wouldn't argue with him at City Consul meetings!

What a jerk... How did he even think he had the right to shoot a kitten? He could have called the cops and let them sort it out... Not like a kitten is going to go on a rampage and kill 12 people

Poor little kitten. Hasn't the guy ever seen a kitten frolic and play?

Why did he shoot

What a jerk!

I hope he's attacked by a horde of angry cats with sharp claws!!!

Im not agreeing with hodge, but i dont agree with people letting cats roam around wherever they want, i dont like seeing cats hunting birds in our back yard. Hodge took it way too far.

*gasps and dies of shock* Poor Mud Pie. R.I.P.

I feel for the kitten and its owner.
But, without taking any sides I must say I find it fascinating that no one pities the man who did the shooting who, for all we know,
may have been honestly making a mistake. After all while it doesn't compare to the loss of life or grief, $819.50 and a two week suspension hurts too.

I agree or take the kitten back. So it wouldn't be hurt.

I would have cried my eyes out. I really would have. None stop. >.>

What a psycho!! He should have his firearms permanently confiscated.

poor kitty

i agree with that !

This is an example of the problem I see with guns. Some people are just too ready to pull the trigger. Now if it was a lion trying to kill him, fair enough, he's defending himself... but a kitten playing? It was 7 months old for christ's sake!

If he thought it was that sick, well, go to the owner about it. I'd rather have to have my pet put down, dying peacefully than to find it shot dead across the street.

Yes .. it's the guns .. i totally agree .

I've shot kittens before. It didn't matter to me if they were strays or belonged to the neighbors. Sometimes I'd sneak up on them while they were sleeping and other times I'd get them when they were playing on the lawn or climbing a tree. Several of my friends still shoot kittens as well.

SD40

i'm glad i'm not your neighbor

Not funny. We all know this is young serial killer behavior.

1. I'm absolutely serious.

2. I'm not that young, unfortunately.

3. I should know by now that no one here knows how to decipher subtle clues (SD40 is a camera).

its not the friggen guns,,a man pulled the trigger the gun didnt run out and shoot itself.


i have killed more then one wild stray cat in my day,,and believe me a gun is a humane way to do it,ive seen them tied in sacks and thrown in the water to drown the kittens,or far worse,,lawn mowers come to mind,,,,anti freeze,,all of these are horrible ways to kill a cat so dont say guns arer to blame thats just silly. i dont condone what this guy did i would never shoot a neighboors cat or a kitten.but sometimes it has to be done.

OMG !