Judge continues hearing in deer hunting lawsuit

EMERALD ISLE, N.C. - A Carteret County judge says he wants more time to hear from both sides of a deer hunt lawsuit on Emerald Isle.

The Lands End subdivision filed an injunction against it's homeowners association for agreeing to participate in the town's sanctioned hunt.

Homeowners argue the deer hunt is a violation of the housing agreement.

The judge voted to continue a scheduled hearing today to allow time to hear out the homeowners' complaints.

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EMERALD ISLE, N.C. - A controversial hunt to lower Emerald Isle's deer population began earlier this week. But one neighborhood is fighting the issue all the way to court.ay.

Emerald Isle sanctioned the hunt on its 42-acre Emerald Isle Woods Park and four other locations to cut back on the growing deer populations.

Not everyone is happy about it.

The Lands End subdivision filed an injunction that temporarily blocks hunters from killing deer.

The injunction bars hunters from the subdivision for 10 days while the issue is heard by a judge. The hunt will continue as scheduled in other areas of Emerald Isle.

Areas where in Lands End where the hunt would take place are common areas of the subdivision. Lands End residents feel that allowing hunting in those areas would put them in danger.

Before deciding on the hunt, the town council looked in to other methods to lower the deer population such as contraception and relocation.

Town Manager, Frank Rush says the town would like to cull around 70 deer from the herd to get the population down to around 100.

Emerald Isle is using a group of 13 voluteer hunters selected by the town. 

The Lands End hearing is scheduled for Monday, January 23rd.

This year's hunt ends February 29th.

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EMERALD ISLE, N.C. - The deer population is doing well this year. So well, in fact, that a Crystal Coast town has a controversial plan to deal with it.

The Town of Emerald Isle is allowing bow hunters to kill deer in the 42-acre Emerald Isle Woods Park.

And some local landowners say that’s just not the way to handle it.

So, does Emerald Isle have a deer problem?

The answer to that question depends on whom you talk to and your definition of the word problem.

"We can't plant what we want to basically, because they're eatin everything you plant and they're now eating things that they've never eaten before," said Clifton Owen, who supports the deer hunt.

The town is scheduling deer hunts to significantly reduce the island's deer population. Differing opinions on the hunt is dividing the community

"It’s just something that you don't want to witness. I certainly do not want to witness this. I just feel that there are other ways to manage the numbers," said Jane DiLoreto, who opposes the deer hunt.

Hunts will take place in Emerald Isle Woods Park in the early morning and the early afternoon to target deer at times when they're the most active.

Hunting in any form is illegal on the island. 

The town will use law enforcement officers and trained bow hunters specifically selected to help thin the herd.

Jane DiLoreto said thinning the herd now will just make it thicker later, “The deer will reproduce at a higher rate. They will have multiple births and they will give birth at a younger age. And this is just nature's way of compensating.”

The current Emerald Isle deer population is estimated at about 174.

Emerald Isle sanctioned bow hunt back in 2010 to cut back on the deer population.

That hunt killed 11 deer from that parcel of land.

This year's hunt but it is expected to start within the next few weeks.