Black Bear
Bigstock

The quote of the day is presented by Guns.com.

A man who was staying in a Gatlinburg, Tennessee motel is facing charges after he opened fire on a black bear he said charged him as he exited his motel room. Locals describe the critter as the “neighborhood bear,” a regular in the area, who they claim wouldn’t hurt anyone.

The man, however wasn’t a local. It isn’t known whether he hit the bear or not. He’s been charged with illegal discharge of a weapon and reckless endangerment.

[Gregory] Sapp spoke to WVLT News on November 8 and said, “He attacked me as soon as I walked out of my room, and I reached in my pocket and grabbed my gun and shot.”

Sapp also said, “It was either me or the bear and I chose me.” The bear ran off into the woods and has not been relocated. Sapp was not injured, and investigators said they do not know if the bear was hit. TWRA is still searching for the animal.

–  “It was either me or the bear:” Man speaks out after shooting at bear

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR

135 COMMENTS

      • Unfortunately, yes. I once shot a large raccoon at center mass as it charged me in my yard once night. It should have died right there, but the .22 must have missed the vitals. It scampered off into the brush 50 yards away and howled like a dog in pain for the next couple of hours. As much as I detest raccoons, it was heart wrenching to hear it in such pain. I found it dead a few days later.

        It was a good reminder to be sure of your target and to make your shots count.

        • Raccoons are tough little animals. I use a 30-30 on them. But ditto on animal suffering. Not knocking .22 but I rarely ever use it even for execution shots. (I live on a farm). It’s fine for small animals like squirrels, but I’ve seen too many times someone shoot an animal point blank in the head with a .22 only for the bullet to stop in the skull and the animal to scream and thrash. Whenever I put I down an animal like to use a .45 lc or 30-30.

        • @Yepnope,

          The raccoon was in a thick bramble, and it was 2:00am. No chance of seeing it in the dark.

          @Merle,

          Unfortunately, I live in the edge of SoCal suburbia, where it’s borderline acceptable to use a .22LR to dispatch vermin if necessary. Two miles closer down the road toward the nearby city, and everyone will be calling the cops on you for discharging a gun. Where I live, I can get away with a single .22 report after midnight without raising any alarms.

        • @I Haz A Question — If this raccoon charged you, that is not normal. It is very likely that it was rabid and needed to be dispatched. Take comfort in the knowledge that you probably prevented this ‘coon from infecting numerous other animals and dying an even worse agonizing death!

          @Yepnope — It’s better not to follow or try to finish off a raccoon that had charged, it very well could have been rabid!

    • Dude, come on. What can even be implied in all of that garbled gibberish? How about we agree to proofread from now on?

      • Not everyone may be as educated as you are.

        Cut him some slack, I was kinda-able to figure out what he was trying to say…

        • @Geoff “Run, Bloomie, run!” PR , @Truckman, @2020Sight — Yeah, that’s it, make excuses for an idiot that refuses to proof read and TRY to make a coherent comment. It’s no wonder our nation is rated so low on an educational level; leftists have succeeded in dumbing down the people, including those who make excuses and those who can’t take criticism for their ignorance. There is no excuse for anyone i this country to not be able to write correctly. It’s pathetic!

      • Three short sentences. Proof read. I’ll cut you some slack if it’s an essay. Otherwise, go sit in the corner.

    • A little less shocking and decisive when one reads the entire story. Thanks TTAG for adding to the clutter by telling only the part that would make us angry.

      • Lots of slant around here. I’ve dug deeper in many a tt ag clickbait and then felt like I have to help clean up the mess in the comments.

        If your business model is to sell eyeballs to advertisers, then you need to sensationalize, inflame, and exaggerate with abandon. Truth and guns be damned.

      • TTAG and several other nominally pro-2A websites live on click-bait headlines to bring people to incomplete and slanted stories written to garner irate responses.

        In this particular case I doubt the shooting was justified, BUT without any evidence to the contrary authorities have no choice other than accepting the testimony of the only available witness — who I really believe just saw “OMG! A BEAR!!” on the walkway, panicked, pulled out his gun and started blasting all over the neighborhood, emptying his pocket pistol.

        If that had actually been an aggressive bear it would have killed him because his random small caliber shots (most or all of which missed) wouldn’t have even slowed an aggressive bear charging him.

    • “Neighborhood bear” my @ss.

      Nothing good comes of having a large predator so habituated to humans that they’re willing to go up to the second floor of a structure.

      • “Nothing good comes of having a large predator so habituated to humans that they’re willing to go up to the second floor of a structure.”

        That’s kinda where I’m at on this one. The second floor implies the bear had little fear of humans.

        It sucks to be him, but I’d be inclined to push for a trial by jury on this. The charges seem a bit odd to me, I was under the (erroneous) impression Tennessee was fairly good about gun rights and self-defense…

        • Guess what? It was the bear’s neighborhood before developers decided to build rental units for tourists who want to come see bears and other wildlife.

          Yes, bears around there are used to humans — and the local humans are used to bears. You leave the bears alone and the bears will leave you alone.

          Lots of macho nonsense being posted here by clowns who have never been closer to any wildlife than what they see flipping past the National Geographic channel while channel surfing their TV.

          The rest of the tourists staying at that Motel 6 are lucky no one what hit by this idiot’s wild shots sprayed all over the area when he panicked because he saw A BEAR!!

          But the charges will be dropped and the idiot will go on his way so he can return home to tell stories about how he faced down a “charging bear”

        • As for a jury trial — if he did get a jury trial he had better hope is lawyer can argue for a change of venue to move the trial to a big city — because it he were tried in Sevier County (where this occurred) he’d be convicted on charges of Unlawful Discharge, Reckless Endangerment, Terminal Stupidity, and Being A Damn Idiot City Boy.

        • Tom before you owned your property it belonged to the native Americans. So I guess you should report to your nearest reservation and offer up your home as a donation to them.

        • “because it he were tried in Sevier County (where this occurred) he’d be convicted on charges of Unlawful Discharge, Reckless Endangerment, Terminal Stupidity, and Being A Damn Idiot City Boy.”

          So, you’re saying the folks in Sevier county are as stupid as you are?

          God help him, then… 😉

        • @Merle O — You’re a f**king IDIOT! Anyone born in this country is a native, so I guess you mean ALL OF US! Your so called “native Americans” did NOT own the land — show me ONE document of any kind that verifies their ownership – prior to the US government deeding them the reservations. They simply migrated here from Asia, then these invaders ran off or killed the previous occupants (if there were any), and they migrated from location to location following the food sources, no different than the migratory aboriginals on all of the continents.

        • Rattler…. that was sarcasm. I was making fun of Tom’s statement that the land belonged to the bears.

        • TomC, are you going to bet your life on bear’s good will? There is no such thing as a tame wild bear. Even if the animal didn’t attack anyone in years, there is no guarantee that it will not attack this time.

        • Merle 0, read his other posts. You can’t expect someone that unhinged to understand something that’s so simple to everyone else.

        • Tom, you are exactly correct.

          Developers build these tourist attractions right in the middle of these animals natural habitat, that’s a big part of the attraction for tourists.

          Then city boy gun-nut, craving an opportunity to discharge his new fangled bang stick, claims he’s frightened by the bear.

          Well maybe he should pick another spot to vacation, besides Bear country.

          For us countryfolk, that’s just a normal day at the office. You just dump your feet, yell, wave your arms and Mr. bear shuffles away.

          But if you’ve been sitting in your man cave, polishing your gun, hoping for a chance to kill something, well then this is the perfect opportunity to express your fear and doubt about your masculinity.

          May I suggest that individuals like this gentleman rush back to their safe, suburban fortress where they can rub the shiny brass phallic symbols and caress the long black barrel of their AR 15.

      • That’s right. Tell that to the woman that they found choked to death with an 8 ft python coiled around her neck. That was a pet too.

        • Hey TomC, I’m sure glad your expertise in the its a bears right to do whatever it likes regardless because it’s his territory shines through here. I guess if you or your family is ever attacked by any wild animal you will roll over and die because you have no right to intrude on any of the wild animals territory. That territory includes every square in the the country by the way. You truly are a idiot.

        • @24gunsalute — Maybe you should learn the difference between a “wild” animal and a “pet”. The woman who was choked to death by her pet python suffered the consequences of her own reckless actions – just like the woman choked to death by her “pet” copying machine!!! (https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=woman+who+was+choked+to+death+by+her+pet+python&view=detail&mid=E946225C268CBB613163E946225C268CBB613163&FORM=VIRE) BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

          I’m simply amazed at the number of people who seriously think that a bear wandering around in a residential area is okay, especially because the locals allowed it and “knew” the bear; and at the same time chastise an out-of-town visitor who has NO IDEA about it and who is suddenly confronted by it and then acts accordingly. I guess you expect this guy to whip out some doggy snacks. You’re the same types of idiots that throw a fit when an alligator kills a homeowner or their dog because they fed it regularly and caused it to lose it’s fear of humans. This bear is no different than that alligator, it’s just a mater of time til it escalates to attacking a human, especially a child.

        • Amazing, all these fraidy-cat gun lovers, who are all too ready to invade wild animals‘ territory, become frightened because there’s actually wild animals there, and use their new fangled AR 15 or desert eagle to blast away.

          Pro tip, if you set up camp or vacation in the midst of wild animal habitat, you are likely to see wild animals. Don’t be a pussy and start blasting away as your eyes roll in fear and your wienie shrivels up, instead, step back and let them have their space.

  4. “Neighborhood bear”? hmm… like a pet lion? Pretty idiotic that they did not remove the “neighborhood bear” – even in TN these animals should be relocated when around a neighborhood.

    • I love these neighborhood “pets.” It’s always so cute and fun until somebody’s dog goes missing or somebody’s BMW get trashed then it’s all “somebody needs to do something!” That “something” should be to tranq and relocate the people who were feeding the wild animal.

        • I was replying to someone who said they should be relocated. That isn’t possible when your backyard is a mountain range.

        • @dude — You’re a dumbasssss! Th e mountain range is the bears “backyard”, not the human neighborhood. The fault lies on the fools that have allowed and enabled the bear by letting him wander around their neighborhood. I am a hunter, I live on a farm in the country, and I enjoy the wildlife that I “share” my property with, but it is NOT their territory and I routinely reinforce that fact!

        • Hey O mighty intelligent genius one Rattlerjake: Click the link below and look at the picture. The “neighborhood” is inside a mountain range. Take a moment to examine the facts next time before making a fool out of yourself.

      • That is what idiots are saying about coyotes in Ca. Coyotes and wild dogs were killed on sight in cities in Ca and after WWII, you did not see them in town(short of a fire in the hills – they came down the storm drains). Fast forward to the 21st century, where cities will no longer manage wild animals. Small dogs and cats get grabbed(coyotes love altered males – for the same reason we eat steer meat and altered hog meat). They do NOT live in the hills, they live in the parks, graveyards, under the freeway, they dig in anywhere they can find for a burrow. They are active 24/7 and not scared of humans. They take small pets right off the leash, they attack people walking pets, etc. Will the city, county, state, forestry do anything? No way!. If you as much as point a BB or pellet gun at them, you will be jailed.
        The idiots will say that these coyote packs were here first, but that was with a 100 year break

    • I think I know this bear. The last time I was in Gatlinburg, I stayed at a motel where a bear visited us both days. One parking lot was on the top floor (motel built into side of hill), and that’s where the bear would come from. We were staying one floor down, and parked below. I have videos of the bear walking right across the gangway into the motel. I notified the manager, but I’m not sure anything was done. There’s no excuse for not relocating the bear and putting up signs not to feed/encourage bear activity.

      • If you have big problems with bears wandering around in the mountains of Gatlinburg, may I suggested in the future you vacation at the beach.

        When the forest comes right up to the back door, expect some wildlife. Don’t be such a wuss, learn how to avoid entanglements with the wildlife, live and let live.

        You sound like one of those liberals who want everyone to make the world safe for them.

    • Ever seen the claws on a bear? Between that and their teeth, they are factory-equipped armed with weapons…

  6. This story is missing details. Either there was something incredibly fishy about the alleged, or Tennessee police are unreasonable cucks.

    • As a Tennessean who lives about 50 miles from where this happened, I answer affirmative on both accounts. Pretty much all the incorporated areas in Sevier County (especially Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge) might as well be Daytona or Myrtle Beach. Same tourist trap town with many of the same attractions, except it is set in the mountains instead of on the beach. The cops act accordingly and cater more so to out of state tourist crowd.

  7. “Locals describe the critter as the “neighborhood bear,” a regular in the area, who they claim wouldn’t hurt anyone.”

    The level of familiarity in that statement makes me wonder if the bear was being fed by some of those same locals.

  8. The idiocy of people never ceases to amaze. “Harmless neighborhood bear.” These idiots need the stupidity beaten out of them with a wooden rod.

  9. I grew up hiking the Smoky Mountains. Black bears are everywhere. I’ve had countless encounters. I’ve heard of very few attacks. It’s the exception, not the norm. So it’s very unlikely that the bear charged him, though it’s still possible. It’s also possible that someone not from there would freak out and take a shot at a bear minding his own business. I don’t know how you would prove it either way.

    • Their room was on the 2nd floor. The bear was on the second floor. Could very well have been the bear ran for the stairs. If you are in between a running bear and the stairs can you tell if he is going to run past you on a narrow walk way or if he is attacking you? What if he changes his mind as he passes a foot away? Personally I say good shoot.

    • @dude — Again you’re showing your STUPIDITY!!!! Seeing bears in the Smoky Mountains is a far cry from having one habituated to human habitation. Most black bears in the wild will avoid humans like the plague, and of those you saw there were probably dozens more you didn’t see. When a bear loses its fear of humans, it is fa more likely to attack for whatever reason. Even non-predators will do it, just look at how many people are attacked by elk or bison in Yellowstone, or cities out west where they are allowed to roam freely. The difference is that people who have grown up around them understand how to avoid a confrontation, tourists, especially foreigners, don’t!

  10. Mebbe Yogi was just looking for a pic-a-nic basket😏Never seen a bear in Cook County,ILL but I’ve seen a myriad of coyote’s,nasty raccoons and tons of deer. It’s illegal to shoot all of them in Cook but dead yotes tell no tail er tail…how would a stranger know a bear is semi-tame?!?

    • Perhaps by the bow tie and derby hat, unless they failed to dress him when he came for breakfast that morning.

    • As for a jury trial — if he did get a jury trial he had better hope is lawyer can argue for a change of venue to move the trial to a big city — because it he were tried in Sevier County (where this occurred) he’d be convicted on charges of Unlawful Discharge, Reckless Endangerment, Terminal Stupidity, and Being A Damn Idiot City Boy.

        • Only when the numb-nuts refused to understand it the first time.

          Let the bear be, go back in your room and wait till it goes away.

          Unless you’re some gun nut, who is spent the last 11 months polishing the long black barrel of his shiny new gun, hoping for the opportunity to kill something.

  12. As we all know, hindsight is 20/20. And, as we also all know, there is no way of knowing what a wild animal is going to do beforehand.

    If a predator is approaching me, I have to assume that predator is dangerous and is moving toward me to eat me or to tear into me (to drive me out of its territory).

    I only see wiggle room if the predator is far away and approaching me slowly, at which point I would yell and try to scare-off the predator.

    If the predator is charging me from far away or is somehow suddenly very close and not immediately retreating, then I would feel compelled to start shooting.

    Caveat: not exactly sure what constitutes “far away” and “very close”. Off the top of my head, “far away” probably means 50 yards away. And “very close” probably means within 20 feet.

  13. Good luck:

    Tennessee Code, Title 39, Chapter 11, Section 39-11-611 (Self-Defense)

    A person who’s in a place lawfully and who isn’t engaged in an illegal activity has no duty to retreat before using or threatening to use force that’s likely to cause serious bodily injury or death if:

    – The person reasonably believes there’s an imminent danger of serious bodily injury or death;
    – The danger is real or honestly believed to be real at the time; and
    – The belief of danger is founded upon reasonable grounds.

    A person who uses deadly force within a residence, business, dwelling, or vehicle is presumed to have held a reasonable belief of imminent death or serious bodily injury to self, family, a member of the household or a person visiting as an invited guest when the force is used against someone who unlawfully and forcibly entered the place.

    • “…no duty to retreat…”
      “The person reasonably believes…”

      That’s the key. I don’t see how they can charge him for that and expect to win. Someone’s just pissed that he took a shot.

      • “person who uses deadly force within a residence, business, dwelling,“

        Well I must’ve missed that in the article, the fact that the shooter was within a residence business or dwelling.

        So the bear was actually in the motel room, fascinating.

        Or was the big fraidy-cat wuss too scared to step back into his room and shut the door?

    • Seems like this guy has a very good lawsuit doesn’t it? I would have sent my wife to the law firm while I was in jail if I were him. I say sue them illiterate cops for as much as he possibly can.

      • He very likely has a case, and if there aren’t any extenuating circumstances, then the lawyers will probably find him. There are many unknown factors however, so it’s difficult to correctly assess the situation.

          • As far as I can tell it seems that you have that more than adequately covered. You keep opening that ignorant yap of yours, and someone is going to come along and close it for you.

        • “You keep opening that ignorant yap of yours, and someone is going to come along and close it for you.”

          Well E. David Quammen, you sure are full of bluster, hiding behind that keyboard.

          Perhaps the arid climate in Phoenix has dried out your brain, but let me assure you, your keyboard threats will not intimidate me into silence.

          • Not hiding anywhere, punk. And your type are the biggest cowards of all. That’s why you cry, moan and wail for more constitutionally perverse gun control. You want your masters to protect you because you don’t have the gonads to do it yourselves. You’re pathetic and don’t belong here in the land of freedom and liberty.

    • Up until recently when an exclusion was added, you could still be charged as he is being charged in an otherwise legal dgu. Although most nobody was ever charged in such a manner before, the legislature ammended the law to bar charges from being brought if it was found to be a legitimate dgu. So he’ll easily walk unless he’s really really retarded.

  14. People are more important than bears. If I encountered a bear coming toward me on the second floor of a hotel breezeway, I’d be pretty inclined to shoot, because that’s very strange behavior and shows a worrying lack of fear of humans. An animal that big can kill or cripple you in an instant. The human always deserves the benefit of the doubt. It’s ludicrous to charge him.

  17. “A few residents said this was a “neighborhood bear” that everyone knows. One resident said that the bear never hurt anyone or any animals. She and other residents have said that he shouldn’t have shot the bear if it wasn’t attacking him.”
    ————————————————

    Absolute nonsense. Any bear acclimated to humans, to human food and garbage must be shot dead at the very first opportunity.

    Any bear when first found showing lack of fear of humans can be shot with bean bags, blasted with air horns, things like that. If they show up again, tranq them and transport far away. If there is no place to transport them, kill them. If transported and they return, kill them.

    Anyone who deliberately feeds bears should be fined the first time and arrested the second. Feeding a bear is killing a bear, plain and simple. You take part in teaching a bear it has nothing to fear from humans and you create a problem bear that will eventually have to be “destroyed”.

    A FED BEAR IS A DEAD BEAR!

  18. I read the link. The bear was on the SECOND floor, not ground level. I walk out of a second-floor room and bear starts in my direction, boom, boom.
    And for the neighbors; IT’S A BEAR, not a dog that wouldn’t “hurt” anybody!

    • I’d be just as afraid of a big dog. You know, those dogs that the owners say “He’s so friendly to everyone, never bit anyone”…..until it kills their sleeping grandkid.

      • Shoot all unaccompanied large dogs on sight because everybody knows all they want to do is eat small children. You’re a wick job.

  19. IT’S A BEAR! It is a DANGEROUS WILD animal. I don’t care how kind and genital it may be to the neighbors. It is a wild animal within striking distance and could potentially attack to kill. I don’t care if the bear was just standing there staring the guy down. Shoot the damn bear before it has the chance to mount an attack, because if it did you’re already a dead man. There is no place to escape from a second story hallway/walkway if it truly decides to comes after you. What would you do if you left your room, closed the door behind you with your key in your pocket only to be threatened by a mugger with a knife?

    • Oh, you guys (David)! Always bringing sex into the conversation. (Exasperated sigh, here) LOL

      • I wasn’t gonna say anything on that, Miss Vic, but if a bear was interested in mine, I’d shoot it too… 🙂

        • Oops! LOL, I wondered what the hell he was referring to. Well, that’s not the first, or even the worst auto correction of my sloppy typing skills. And just more evidence of my being too impatient/ lazy to proofread before I post. I humbly accept the well deserved ridicule.

  20. This is B.S.! There shouldn’t be ANY Charges Period. Even considering there were no other witnesses. “Locals” knew the bear and its common presence in the area and what “they” preceived of its disposition. Man without any knowledge of the animal, encounters Bear in close proximity (while in urban/man/environment): would naturally be in fear of injury or death for himself or Wife that was present. He shoots at (hits?) Bear is a natural self preservation action.

    The Bear hit or not could have charged and even entered motel room preventing any escape for he humans.

    Note: The man never mentioned if the thought “Do I have enough gun/bullet to stop the bear or will I just injure/piss it off more!”. For me, that means that the immediate situation drove an immediate response WITHOUT time for such mental reasoning.

    BAD Locals allowed bears continued presents in the area. Bear was just taking advantage of opportunities he was allowed to have. Defender responded to the threat.

  21. On one trip to Cades Cove I witnessed a couple of people chasing after a full size adult bear with cameras in hand, shouting “here bear, come here.” The bear was clearly smarter and fortunately faster than the complete idiots chasing it.

    • I *really* hope you were video recording that, the graphic edit of that video would have made 3+ million views on YouTube…

    • So he was smarter than the average bear? They should have been yelling, “Here Yogi, here Yogi”!

  22. Was he attacked? Hard to know. But having a bear in such close proximity to humans in an uncontrolled environment is not the fault of the bear or shooter. It’s the fault of the people feeding the bear.

  23. Quote “The man, however wasn’t a local. It isn’t known whether he hit the bear or not. He’s been charged with illegal discharge of a weapon and reckless endangerment.” They don’t know if he hit the bear because they haven’t found the bear. They don’t know if he missed the bear because there are no bullet holes in the ice machine, vending machines, walls, doors, other people, etc. While the stories do say he fired 6 times, I didn’t find anything stating what type of round he was using. Really wouldn’t have done me any good because I don’t know what it takes to stop a charging bear or even a bear running for the hills. Perhaps some of the other readers could have used that information. IMHO unless the police are saying that it is illegal to shoot at a bear because it was the motel’s mascot, some other reason or they have evidence that the bear did not approach the man, there can not be an illegal discharge of a weapon. Similarly without showing actual endangerment I don’t think that charge should be upheld either.

  24. Maybe the hotel\motel and community should warn their guests of friendly local bears.
    TWRA should also fine the community for causing the incident by feeding and domesticating the bears. And finally, for being unthoughtful of wildlife, the community should apologize and pays for the shooters vacation.

  25. I’m not saying this isn’t a righteous shoot, because it is, but… he coulda stepped back into his room and called it in. I know… stand your ground and all that… but still… he did have a choice.

    • Been to a motel lately? You need a key card to open the door. Before you leave you are going to make sure that the card is in a secure safe place on your person so it won’t get lost. Where do most people keep the key card? IN THEIR WALLET. Faced with a ligament threat to life and limb by the presence of a large wild predatory animal in an enclosed structure, do you reach for your wallet or your defensive weapon? Do you even have the time to decide before the threat closes the distance? Your loved family member is protected on the other side of a locked door, do you open that door and expose them to the potential threat of being mauled? Can you out run a bear?

      STUPID, stupid, ignorant people saying ” but he was a good boy, He din’ deserve to be shot. He din’ do nothin’.” They are the ones that put the bear in peril of being shot in the first place.

  26. Just a related true story: My wife’s 96 year-old aunt was reading her paper at her upstate NY cabin, when a bear grabbed her hummingbird feeder, pole and all, and started to drag it to the woods. Aunt L promptly ran out, swatted the bear on the nose with her rolled-up paper, and the bear beat a hasty retreat. Her family advised her not to be attacking bears anymore. I’ll bet that bear told all his friends to watch out for that crazy old lady!

    • Excellent response, this is exactly how the situation should be handled.

      Of course, if you’re a gun nut who has been lovingly polishing the long black barrel of your shiny desert eagle for the past year, craving an opportunity to kill something.

      Perhaps in a few years, this man’s testicles will descend and he will mature, capable of understanding the situation and acting appropriately, rather than blasting away at the first opportunity.

  27. Perhaps the hotel management is responsible for not telling the customer that prior to billing the person. Obviously the real people to blame are the idiots who’ve been feeding this bear. The bear now associates people with food and no longer fears people, which is not good for the bear.

  28. The bears actually come in the hallways in some of the downtown Gatlinburg motels. It’s common.

    Been there a million times…

  29. The local papers here in TN said the bear was a cub, not much of a threat, and all the man had to do is step back through the door.

  30. Everyone who lived in the area knew about the bear, and no doubt so did the Motel 6 management. But travelers using the motel were never warned about this bear or any other “friendly bear.”

    If it were a man holding a knife that charged the motel guest I expect it would have been clear to cops what happened. But since it was the large furry clawed neighborhood pet everyone knew about except motel guests that charged the man he was not justified in this self defense shooting. Put yourself in this mans place. Would you take the time to trade your .45 for a 30-30 ? Take the time for a head shot ? Would you run, Jump over the handrail to the first floor or Pull your phone out and dial 911 ? Tell us how you would take the time to consider all the options on how to effect clean kill without hurting the charging bear.

    My uneducated guess is that the motel guest has law firms calling him night and day offering pro bono legal help. And Motel 6 is in deep doo doo.

    The uneducated critics will forever be lurking these pages. But not one was present to witness the event. Not one was in the motel guests shoes that day. And its clear not one critic posting here is an expert in bear behavior, or the law. Not even me. All one needs to be convinced of how fast events can go from immediate threat sensed to drawn weapon is to experience being attacked by a man or charging beast.

Comments are closed.