Police Won’t Face Charges For Driving Over Rabid Raccoon

COEYMANS, N.Y. (AP) — The county prosecutor says upstate New York police officers won't face animal cruelty charges for using their official vehicles to kill a rabid raccoon.

Two videos posted to Facebook last month show two Town of Coeymans Police Department vehicles running down a raccoon in a shopping plaza parking lot near Albany, New York. The videos had over 7 million views and brought an outcry against the officers from animal advocates.

Albany County District Attorney David Soares announced Thursday that using the vehicle wasn't ideal, but it was the only option the officers had. He said they lacked proper equipment to deal with animals and it was too dangerous to shoot the raccoon in a busy shopping plaza.

The Department of Environmental Conservation previously decided no charges were warranted.