I did wonder who would file charges against him. He had been coming from a meeting held at a bar.

why would he be reporting hitting a deer if he was uninjured, unless it was a CMA for the damage to his car when he did a hit and run? I've hit deer and never called LE because I could drive my car away.

Only the best and brightest being elected there in SD.

Only reasons I can think about are CYA, driving a state vehicle, and/or having just enough to drink not to be thinking clearly. If he had to turn what he was driving in that night he would not have wanted to explain what happened to the person who checked it in.

Oh, that makes sense. I cannot imagine a state employee/elected official in my state parking a gov't vehicle for a meeting at a bar, but I suppose it happens.

Up to no good, obviously. However, I cannot imagine hitting a deer and then

just driving away without reporting it. So, you would just leave it injured to

suffer...or leave it dead and in the way of some other unsuspecting driver

hitting it and causing an accident? Wow...to the above poster who said they

wouldn't call LE unless THEIR car was damaged. Just Wow!

He may have thought the powers that be should remove the carcass from the road...in the dark another car could come along and run over it, causing yet another accident.

I wonder about the damage to the car? The two people I know who hit deer had considerable damage.

OP: we can only hope that it starts from the top down!

#VoteChange

I read more about the story today. He called the police because his car was too damaged to drive home, and he borrowed a car to get home. LE came and they searched the area that night, not finding anything. He returned to pick up his car the next day and found the man's body. Weird story, prayers for the deceased and their family.

why would he be reporting hitting a deer if he was uninjured,

If he had hit it in WI, because reporting that you have hit a deer with a motor vehicle is required by law.

Outside of the requirement of law, the rule of Good Sense applies:

You report it so the animal can be euthanized if it is severely injured and suffering. Or removed from the roadway if it expired there & has become a traffic obstruction.

Way back in the day, at a company I worked for, underwriters & claims adjusters had a saying for single car accidents - which often involved dui and claims of avoiding animals.

They called it the “fur in the bumper rule” (self-explanatory). When they were adjusting or underwriting and reviewing photos, they wanted to see confirmation of the claim.

If he wanted to report hitting a deer because he was concerned about it being an obstruction seems like he would have stayed on the scene and called from there. He obviously had the ability to call a friend for a ride.

Weird stories -- plural. Whichever version is true, who of us knows. Given the persons involved, let's not hold our breath. Condolences to the deceased's loved ones.

The account I read was that his vehicle was disabled due to the collision, he called 911 to report it, a law enforcement officer arrived and they "looked for the deer" but were unable to find it. So the law enforcement officer gave the AG a ride home. And no sobriety test was administered.

Nearby there was a disabled vehicle at the side of the road which could have belonged to the victim.

Thanks bob, if that's the story that puts it in a very different light.