Skunk killing raises a stink (TX)

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Skunk killing raises a stink Jury to review school official's actionsBy COLLEEN KAVANAGHEagle Staff WriterAn assistant principal says she was just trying to protect her students when she shot a skunk on the grounds of Anderson Elementary School, but a Grimes County grand jury will review the episode to determine if a criminal charge should be filed against the administrator.The skunk had trapped a group of elementary students in the school's gymnasium on Jan. 8, according to the assistant principal, Kimmie DeVillier, and District Attorney Tuck McLain.Fearing that the animal might be rabid, DeVillier retrieved a rifle from her vehicle and shot it at close range.Unlawfully carrying a weapon at a prohibited place - such as a school campus - is a third-degree felony punishable by up to 10 years in prison and a $10,000 fine. DeVillier said Tuesday that she uses the rifle to kill buzzards and other wild animals on her pasture and had accidentally left it in her car that Tuesday. After students first noticed the skunk outside the gym, the school called Grimes County sheriff's deputies and Navasota animal control officers to the scene.But the skunk went under the gym and could not be captured. The officers left, but the skunk later reappeared, giving rise to concerns that it might be rabid and attack one of the 30 students trapped in the gym."You can't throw rocks or sticks at it because it's already stirred up," DeVillier said. "The kids were inside on the floor with the P.E. teacher. It was a mistake to fire a weapon on campus, but I was looking out for the safety of the kids and trying to make sure one of them was not bitten, if it was rabid." Sheriff Don Sowell said he later received a few calls from upset residents inquiring about the shooting, and he attended last week's school board meeting to answer questions about the incident."We've had circumstances where kids had daddy's hunting rifle in their car and forgot about it, and nobody went to jail for it," Sowell said.The sheriff said his department passed its report on the shooting to McLain's office, and McLain said he would let a grand jury decide whether DeVillier should face a criminal charge. "I think the complaint and that people are trying to make something out of this is silly," McLain said. "I don't see this as the circumstance the law was designed to cover." Colleen Kavanagh's e-mail address is ckavanagh@theeagle.com c 2000, 2001 The Bryan/College Station Eagle Privacy Statement http://www.theeagle.com/region/localregional/012302skunkkilling.htm