Goslings killed by driver in Peabody, city officials say

Speeding car said not to stop after striking birds

Three goslings were crossing a busy street in Peabody when they were run over by a speeding car last week in front of several residents who were out heading to work or school, city officials said Thursday.

The goslings were with a group of geese when they were struck Tuesday morning on Winona Street in West Peabody, said Ward 6 City Councilor Mark O’Neill.

“The driver of the vehicle apparently did not slow down while approaching the group of geese or even bother to stop after striking the young birds,” O’Neill, who represents the area, said in an e-mail. “There were witnesses to this horrible event including children who [were] waiting for their school bus.”

A spokesman for Peabody police said officers responded to the scene at 7:43 a.m. Investigators have obtained a video of the incident and are looking for a gray, two-door vehicle that is believed to be an Infiniti.

“We’ve checked the registry. We’ve checked multiple sources, but we haven’t come up with any plates yet,” Lieutenant David Bonfanti said in an interview Thursday night. “Hopefully somebody can identify the vehicle so we can identify a driver, or owner-operator.”

Canada geese are known to frequent Crystal Lake, which is in the neighborhood near the Lynnfield line. With their long necks, short legs, and webbed feet, the geese are a familiar sight.

So the sight of them being run over by a car, perhaps intentionally, naturally shocked residents.

“Multiple neighbors were out and witnessed it, the man driving acknowledged my neighbor yelling at him and decided he would drive even faster and blow the stop sign,” said Nicolette Muse, a resident of Winona Street.

Speeding is an issue on Winona Street, which is used a cut from Route 1, she said. There is a five-way intersection just yards away, and multiple elementary schools in walking distance, she said.

The driver didn’t slow down “as everyone else was,” Muse said of other vehicles traveling at the time. Instead, the driver went faster and swerved “towards the grass area” where a large group of geese were.

Other drivers stopped to help a neighbor remove the birds’ bodies from the road, Muse said.

“My neighbors then buried them,” Muse said.

Bonfanti said that geese were struck by a vehicle in the area about five or six years ago, but the driver wasn’t charged.

“It was an accident,” Bonfanti said. “The guy didn’t take off.”

If the driver is identified, Bonfanti said police will have to determine if this incident was an accident. If it was intentional, the driver could face animal cruelty charges, he said.

“I’m not sure if it was intentional,” Bonfanti said. “That’s why [if ] we find the driver I’m going to have to interview him.”