State legislators in Connecticut are demanding an explanation after a local father said he had been arrested and charged with killing a bear in self-defense.
Todd Topicz, 39, of Bethlehem in Litchfield County, told local broadcaster WFSB earlier this month that he believed he had to act when a black bear entered his garage, raided his trash, came “within feet” of his two children, and was then chased up a tree by his dog.
Topicz said he fired five warning shots at the bear and chased it off into the woods, only to realize afterwards that he had accidentally hit and killed it.
Killing bears is illegal in Connecticut unless a person “reasonably believes” that it is entering an occupied building, attacking or threatening a human being, or attacking a properly controlled pet.
Nevertheless, the state’s Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) charged Topicz with the illegal taking of a bear, meaning he must now undergo a rehabilitation program to dismiss the count.
“We were all threatened. It entered our home. And I have no idea why DEEP ended up charging me for this,” the U.S. Army veteran told WFSB.
In a letter to DEEP last week, Republican state Senators Eric Berthel, Henri Martin, and Stephen Harding said Topicz had been “understandably confused” by his arrest, and they requested to know why DEEP was refusing to comment on the case.
“A public statement from DEEP regarding this public safety matter would help resolve confusion and enable us to better communicate with our constituents,” they wrote.
A spokesperson for DEEP told The Independent that it could not comment on Topicz’s case because a court has ordered that its record be sealed.
According to CT Insider, the state’s bear population has boomed in recent years, causing controversy over whether the state should allow a bear hunt to cull the animals’ numbers.
Topicz, who moved to Connecticut from Florida about a year ago, said the incident occurred last August when he was taking an evening nap after coming home from work and suddenly heard his wife yelling.
Grabbing his pistol, he found that a black bear had wandered into the family’s garage while his 3-year-old daughter and 10-year-old stepson were playing there
While Topicz’s wife grabbed the kids, the bear went after a garbage bag, before apparently going outside where it was chased up a tree by his Belgian Shepherd dog.
Topicz then tried to scare the bear off with warning shots, eventually causing it to climb down and run off into the forest. A neighbor heard the noise and called the police, who arrested Topicz on charges of negligent discharge of a firearm and breach of the peace.
The next day he found the bear dead in a ditch nearby, ultimately leading the state’s Environmental Conservation Police — part of DEEP — to charge him with its death.