Several Deer Carcasses Discovered in Brighton City Limits

Editor's Note: Some of the images included with this story are graphic in nature.

When Brighton resident Pat Cole turned onto Appian Way out of curiosity to see what was on the street on Tuesday, she never thought she would find several decomposed deer body parts.

"When I got down there I saw a lot of household debris and stuff and I thought, what the heck?" she said. "The more I looked at it, I thought, 'wait a minute.'"

Cole, a seasoned deer hunter, recognized some of the debris as body parts of several deer.

"I got out of my car and started walking around what was there to satisfy my mind that I was really seeing what I thought I was seeing," Cole said. "I was quite appalled by what I saw. And it truly escapes me how no one in the city, be it the police department or the ordinance officer could not have seen that."

Cole said she saw lots of rib cages and hooves.

"My first thoughts were, somebody's been back there poaching. You can't shoot firearms in the city, but nothing is stopping bow and arrow or crossbow," she said. "You're not supposed to do that either, but it would be silent. It's the only conclusion I could come to as to why there were so many deer back there. They've been taking the prime parts off and leaving the rest. But that's just an assumption on my part, whether it's a dumping site or a poaching site as well."

Cole called the Brighton Police Department as well as the City's Department of Public Services to report her discovery. Police were at the scene and making a report Friday morning.

Brighton Police Lt. John Westendorf said Appian Way would be a convenient dumping area because it's a remote cul de sac, surrounded by woods with nobody around. Westendorf said this doesn't happen often in the city limits because there are not many remote places like that on Appian Way.

"I don't see any signs of a fresh kill, that's mainly what I was looking for," Westendorf said. "These pieces are pretty well decomposed."

While Cole hinted that there were carcasses that numbered in double digits, Westendorf said that he couldn't fathom to guess how many actual deer were at the site, because there were many pieces and a blanket of snow made it difficult to see.

Westendorf said the City will most likely work with the property owner to get the remains cleaned up. He was unsure of who the property owner is at this time.