Vigil held for Colo. elk shot by police officer

BOULDER, Colo. A neighborhood held a candlelight vigil on Sunday to mourn an elk that was shot and killed by a police officer.

About 75 people attended the ceremony, according to CBS station KCNC in Denver, Colo. They sang songs including "Amazing Grace" and "We Shall Overcome" in honor of the elk who had been nicknamed Big Boy, George and Elmo. The animal was considered my community members to be a "guardian" of the community and often frequented the area.

"I don't see a whole lot of difference between the shooting of this defenseless elk and the shooting of school children in Connecticut," one vigil attendee told KCNC.

Boulder police officer Sam Carter poses with the elk he claims he "humanely euthanized."

/ KCNC

The elk was shot by an on-duty Boulder police officer named Sam Carter, who then posed with the carcass after the animal had died, KCKC reported. Carter claimed that he "humanely euthanized" the elk because it had been limping. Another officer, Brent Curnow, is accused of helping load the elk onto a vehicle and then processing it for meat. The incident was not reported until residents began to ask what had happened. Many claim that the animal had seemed healthy before its demise.

The two men are on administrative leave with pay while the department investigation continues, and Boulder police chief Mark Beckner said the act was against "protocol," KCNC added.

Vigil organizer Jim Riemersma told the Daily Camera that he organized the ceremony to help give the community closure and some time to grieve and celebrate the life of the elk.

Many outraged people at the ceremony called for the firing of the police officers, and some felt they should be prosecuted under anti-poaching laws, several sources reported.

"People live here because we love the wildlife," Esther Parson told the Daily Camera. "To murder an animal who feels like he's part of the neighborhood is despicable."

[1pheasant1]

They were sworn-in to protect and serve elk meat to their family and friends.

[FreddyBoy29]

If these people can't see a difference between an Elk being shot and school children being murdered by a psychopath then they are way off. It's sick to even compare the two events. Shame on them!!

[Backnblack-87]

Wow, You tree huggers sure go batmoon full retard out west....

And those that say LEO's are trigger happy, Don;t bother calling them next time you are being assaulted or robbed.

[Investradamus]

As a responsible hunter, all hunters and gun owners should be pissed off at these two terrible excuses for police officers. They negligently discharged their firearm and never reported the discharge as required? Why? Because they abused their badge by using it as an excuse to illegally hunt. That's basically what this is. They shot the elk, without a hunting license, without tagging the elk,and did so Iin a residential area where they did not have permission to hunt. Then quiely tried to process the meat for themselves. This is called POACHING. I ****ing hate poachers.

[Sharon-69]

You are ALL sick beyond words! A defenseless sweet animal is killed and you people are laughing. I hope something bad happens in your lives and I will laugh! What is wrong with this SICK world? Oh I know, people like YOU live in it!

[lucasinparker]

Only in Boulder, a place where people dress as peasants to "fit in" as they await access to their trust funds, can something this ridiculous take place! Many people have DIED as a result of a deer in the road...where's the "Kumbaya" singing kooks then? Sheesh! Bunch of croc-wearin, prius peddlin' hypocrites! Same fools who believe Al Gore was the "savior of the environment"...give me a break!

[JCO4O1]

I think laughing at the death of a human is FAR more sick than laughing at vigil for an elk.

[dalyrymple]

And did I add...YOU HAVE NO SENSE IF YOU GO FOR THIS KIND OF NONSENSE....
You are all stupid beyond belief. This is what happens in an industrialized, grocery store, convenience store society, where nobody knows anything about the real world. When the power goes out and the shelves are empty YOU will be begging for venison and squirrel and rabbit and whatever else you can find to eat. You are idiots if you are part of this animal rights/environmental cabal that will kill you in the end. Wake up, comrades! Do not go along with everything you hear from a bunch of statists who want your FREEDOM. Do not be afraid to CONFRONT STUPIDITY...Confront these Animal Rights KOOKS and evildoers amongst you. Weed them out for ridicule. They ARE idiots....

[dalyrymple]

Give me a break. A vigil for an animal? Give me a break, people. Have you all gone insane? When you put an animal's life on a par with humans, you are degrading HUMAN LIFE. Get your priorities straight! It's not the same.....You folks who do this are INSANE...Entiendo? You are wrong. You are way off-base......You are KOOKS.

[dalyrymple]

Give me a break. A vigil for an animal? Give me a break, people. Have you all gone insane? When you put an animal's life on a par with humans, you are degrading HUMAN LIFE. Get your priorities straight! It's not the same.....You folks who do this are INSANE...Entiendo? You are wrong. You are way off-base......You are KOOKS.

[dylan_89]

anyone that allowed that elk to walk around the city is not very bright. I dont know if any of you have ever seen what a white tail deer and fallow deer will do to someone if they get agitated whether they are a pet or not. An animal like that no matter how timid and calm it maybe normally is still a saftey risk. It doesnt take much to **** off the wrong animal

[boulderfan]

I think your reporting is trying to get people mad more than be accurate. You wrote " 'I don't see a whole lot of difference between the shooting of this defenseless elk and the shooting of school children in Connecticut,' one vigil attendee told KCNC."

Actually, the main speaker stood up and said that we were there to remember the elk and pay tribute, and to keep in mind that this is much LESS serious than the other human tragedies that have occurred recently. So you found one person who said something inflammatory, the main sentiment of the group was the opposite of what you indicated.

ALSO, the group was at least 200 as estimated by me and the Daily Camera, not 75 as you state.

You guys really blew it on this story, please be more less misleading and more accurate in the future.

[Ulgnud]

Although it might have gone better if a Vet or a Game & Fish officer was involved there are some facts missing here. Only the Officer really knew how bad the animal was limping. Naturally the "Armchair Admirals" know everything without even being there. Large animals and traffic seldom mix well. It could have been hit and run off after the collision. Happens a lot. The Officer may have seen how badly a leg was damaged and taken action. The part that startles me is the reaction. Candle light vigils and singing songs? Get real. Anger I can understand. I am glad I do not live in this community of nutbags. Oh by the way. Elk is a delicious meat.