$9,500 awarded in shooting settlement!

Bancroft, MI – PKC member Adam O’Donnell has learned that justice can be served even when things don’t loo k promising at the start. Here’s his story:

On the night of June 20 of 2002, Adam was hunting a hound that he was extremely proud of and rightly so. The Treeing Walker male, soon to be a four-year old was a double grandson of the great Sackett, Jr. and had just completed his Grand Nite Champion degree. At approximately 4 a.m., Tramp was shot and killed by a landowner, devastating O’Donnell and his family. But, as anyone that knows Adam can attest, he’s competitive and determined, and he had been injured deeply by the loss of Tramp. He decided to fight.

There was one problem to address as he sought relief from the justice system. He had been hunting during Michigan’s “quiet time,” a term used to describe the three-month long closed training season and, he had failed to keep Tramp’s county dog license up to date. He would learn that his negligence in these key areas would prevent him from bringing criminal charges against Tramp’s killer. Disappointed but far from ready to give up, O’Donnell knew that the punishment, that of killing his dog, did not fit the crime. It simply was wrong for the dog’s life to be taken in this way and so he sought legal help. Adam contacted David Zoglio, a Lansing attorney and filed a civil suit against the shooter.

On March 1st of this year, after going into mediation with the defendant, O’Donnell agreed to a settlement in the amount of $9,500. “Even though the shooter didn’t serve any jail time, the crime didn’t go unpunished,” O’Donnell said. “I don’t expect he’ll be shooting any more dogs.”

“I learned two things in this process,” said Adam. “Never let your dog license expire and pay closer attention to local laws such as the ‘quiet time.’ Only hunt your dog in closed season while in a licensed competition hunt.”

O’Donnell credits John Wick with giving him some sound advice on the day after Tramp was shot and killed. “Now I know that his advice helped,” said Adam. “He told me that it was imperative that I keep my cool! He said, ‘when something like this happens, you want to pay back the shooter and so will all your buddies. If a friend wants to help you but cannot stay calm and collected, simply invite that friend to not participate in trying to help you.’ In that regard, O’Donnell admitted that he had numerous phone calls from “good ole boys” that said, “Just tell us where this guy lives and we’ll take care of it.” “And God bless them,” said O’Donnell, “I believe they would have but that’s just not what I wanted. No dog is worth the life of another human, no matter how backward or disturbed that individual may be.”

“When I caught up with this guy, I already knew he had killed my dog. And, I forced myself to conduct my manners as if the judge was standing there in the woods with us because I already knew if he had indeed shot my dog, that I would meet him again in a courtroom! If I would have flown off the handle, I would have lowered myself to his level and surely this case would have had a much different outcome,” O’Donnell said. “I can only hope these backward land owners catch up to the times. The ‘shoot, shovel, and shut-up’ days are over, especially since organizations like PKC have made our beloved coonhounds so much more valuable,” Adam said in closing.

There are a lot of folks that Adam wanted to thank for stepping up to the plate with their financial contributions to help him retain a lawyer. He mentioned specifically Ray Stein, Larry Atherton, Erick Fairchild, Scott Haynes, Joel Allmand, Jim Fraze, Jim Sizemore, Tim Browning, and Randy Dowd. He also thanks Timothy Ball, John Wick, Larry Meeks, Steve Fielder, John Walkup, Wayne O’Donnell, and Jerry Moll for providing advice and testimonial letters.

If you have further questions about Adam’s case and would like to discuss it with him, his phone number is 989-634-8198. His attorney is also available should you require his services in a similar situation in the future. Hopefully you won’t!
Here is the attorney’s contact information:

David Zoglio, Attorney at Law
322 W. Ottawa St.
Lansing, MI 48933
517-372-4143

We share Adam’s pain in the loss of his hound but also rejoice in his victory. Word travels fast and because of his willingness to fight within the system, all hunters in his area can release their hounds with a greater assurance that they will be recovered safely, that what happened to Tramp is not now as likely to happen to them. Thanks, Adam.

PHOTO – The Adam O’Donnell family with Bauman’s Tramp.