A Broadway man who nursed a young deer back to health has lost the animal to Virginia wildlife officials and faces three misdemeanor charges.
Doyle Ritchie says he didn't realize he was breaking the law when he kept the deer in his backyard after it was hit by a car and later attacked by dogs.
But recently, the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries took the deer and Ritchie was charged with the misdemeanors, including illegal possession of a wild animal.
Ritchie told The Daily News Record of Harrisonburg he only wanted to give the deer a chance to live. He says it was like part of his family.
But a state wildlife official says the laws are intended to keep wild animals wild.
Copyright AP - Associated Press
