Several trees assembled as a well-regulated forest defended themselves against the driver of a Ford Crown Victoria in Union County, North Carolina in late December. The incident began when deputies from the local sheriff’s office tried to locate a wanted fugitive at a nearby address. Union County Sheriff’s Office stated in a release that the sought individual wasn’t found, but 30-year-old Deyonta Wilson fled the location and became the trees’ problem.
The department continued:
“When they arrived, Wilson, who was driving a stolen Ford Crown Victoria, drew a great deal of attention to himself when he attempted to flee by using the stolen vehicle to ram a local resident’s fence gate and began victimizing assorted trees and shrubbery by driving through a heavily wooded area.”
My skin shivers just thinking about that Crown Vic slamming into tree trunk after tree truck and plowing through poor, innocent bushes. They had no choice but to defend themselves. The sheriff’s office stated that the trees disabled the vehicle, and Wilson started to flee on foot. He was apprehended by the deputies after a brief foot chase. Wilson was charged with a lengthy list of offenses, including possession of a stolen motor vehicle, possession of drug paraphernalia and injury to trees/cops/land.
Will the trees face any legal repercussions for defending themselves? North Carolina does have a stand-your-ground law that states, “A person is justified in using force, except deadly force, against another when and to the extent that the person reasonably believes that the conduct is necessary to defend himself or herself or another against the other’s imminent use of unlawful force.”
Are trees people? Union County Sheriff’s Office seems to believe that they are.