Criminal charges filed against Pennsylvania teens in deer torture video

Two Pennsylvania teens were hit with felony charges Friday in connection with a social media video that authorities say showed them torturing a wounded deer, state Game Commission officials said.

The charges against Alexander Brock Smith, 18, of Brookville and an unidentified 17-year-old boy stem from a video posted Nov. 30 that went viral.

The 17-year-old defendant shot and wounded a white-tailed deer when he and Smith hunted together on property owned by Smith’s family in Beaver Township, Jefferson County, according to the Pennsylvania Game Commission and court documents.

With the buck wounded and immobilized, the teens videotaped themselves “kicking, stomping a live, wounded deer in the head multiple times,” according to court papers. The video was posted to social media and was turned in to the Pennsylvania Game Commission, which launched an investigation.

According to the juvenile hunter, he and Smith were trying to kill the wounded deer, investigators said.

The younger hunter told authorities he shot the deer from a tree stand. The deer fell to the ground about 150 yards away. Then the boy accidentally ejected a live round out of his gun onto the floor of the tree stand. He said he left the tree stand and tried to shoot the deer again to kill it and he missed, according to a criminal complaint.

The younger hunter told investigators he didn’t have any more ammunition or a knife to finish off the buck. He said his knife was in his vehicle about 250 yards away, according to the complaint.

Smith told authorities that he was not carrying a gun.

The video, allegedly made by Smith with his cellphone, shows the deer temporarily paralyzed from the gunshot wound. The animal attempted to struggle with each kick with Smith standing on the deer’s back leg, according to court documents.

Smith sent videos of him and the juvenile kicking and stomping on the animal via Snapchat to others, including the juvenile , police said.

Each suspect gave a different account of whether one antler fell off or was pulled from the deer while it was alive.The juvenile hunter put the antler in his vehicle and later presented it to authorities.

Both suspects said the deer didn’t die; it ran about 20 yards, fell, and then got up and ran off.

The juvenile was contacted later by Smith, who requested that he delete the video from his phone, according to court documents. However, the state police computer crime unit in Meadville retrieved the video.

Smith’s videos went viral and public outrage ensued. Numerous people complained on the Pennsylvania Game Commission’s (PGC) Facebook page about the amount of time it was taking to complete the investigation.

PGC acknowledged the public’s frustrations and responded that nailing down details for the investigation took time.

PGC Executive Director Bryan Burhans said Friday in a press release that the filing of charges “brings to an end a thorough investigation about an incident that has drawn much attention and public outrage.”

Burhans said posts about the incident on the agency’s Facebook page have made clear the contempt hunters hold for the actions depicted on the video.

“Hunters care deeply about wildlife,” Burhans said in the statement. “It’s through their decades of dedication to the outdoors that we enjoy healthy and sustainable populations of wild birds and mammals, and that those wildlife species that encounter trouble are identified and afforded additional protection.”

The pair were charged with two counts of aggravated animal cruelty, two counts of conspiracy to commit aggravated animal cruelty and other charges. Smith waived the charges to court Friday before Magisterial District Judge Gregory M. Bazylak in Jefferson County and was released on $50,000 unsecured bail.

Calls to Smith’s attorney, Joseph Ryan of Reynoldsville, were not immediately returned Friday afternoon.