Saw some roadkill today...

[ktulu61]

...and it got me thinking. Say I'm driving and I hit an animal with my car. I pull over to assess the damage and see that the animal isn't dead but is clearly suffering and is going to die. I know it would be the right thing to do morally to put it out of it's misery right there, but is it illegal to do so? I'm about 99% sure that it is, but the bloated hog in the middle of the road today got me thinking about it.

[howdy]

I'm sure the most important thing to know is "where are you when you hit the animal". I will go out on a limb here and say NO, in general you can't shoot an injured animal. IANAL

[JALLEN]

Most cities have ordinances about discharging a firearm in the city limits, and most HOA's have prohibitions to the same effect. What might be unobjectionable out in rural Llano, or Junction, etc. might get you in a lot of trouble in downtown Houston.

[jmra]

Too many variables. If it is a game animal there is no way I'm shooting it. Unless I had documented instructions from the game warden, I'm going to let the authorities deal with.