It turns out that someone was illegally killing geese in Springfield, Ohio, but it wasn't a Haitian immigrant.
Donald Trump and Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH) spread baseless claims that the city's sizable Haitian immigrant population was stealing and eating other residents' pets, and police investigated rumors they were also killing Canada geese – but journalist Steven Monacelli found exactly one such case involving a white man from the area on the day of the presidential debate.
"Complainant Michael Dudley ... observed a white male in his late 50s or early 60s, who was heavy set and riding a lawnmower, get off the lawnmower with a shotgun and shoot two geese near water on [Rocky Lake Golf Course]," police said in an incident report. "The man picked up the first goose and tossed it into the weeds. The second goose was wounded and as he collected it the man twisted it breaking its neck. This goose was disposed of in the same manner."
Police spoke to the golf course manager the following day, Sept. 11, and she admitted that she allowed several individuals to hunt geese on the property, and based on the witness description she believed the hunter was one of her employees named Brian Comer, who then called officers himself.
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"Mr. Comer advised that he was responsible for shooting the geese," police said. "Mr. Comer advised that he thought the golf course had a nuisance permit and that he could shoot the geese."
However, police found the golf course did not hold a goose damage permit, and Comer did not have the necessary permits required to shoot the geese, and he was cited for hunting without an Ohio wetlands stamp, a fourth-degree misdemeanor that carries a maximum 30-day jail term or $250 in fines.
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