Crime & Safety

Video: Authorities Kill Mountain Lion in Sunland

Fish and Game officials shot and killed a mountain lion in nearby Sunland. Do you think they overreacted by killing the animal?

An 80-pound mountain lion was fatally shot by Fish and Game officials near the Angeles National Forest in Sunland, according to KTLA5

Sunland resident Marleen Hitt saw the large cougar near her garage Friday afternoon and called 911, KTLA reported.

The 2 to 3-year-old animal hid near bushes in a yard when police shot at the cougar to make it run away.

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"I heard five shots spread out, then I knew that they had found it," Hitt said. 

The warden arrived and shot the mountain lion, according to KTLA. 

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"The game warden felt that the situation warranted the most extreme measure for the safety of the lion, the safety of the people around it," Andrew Hughan of California Fish and Game said. 

Officials say that this case was different from the .

"Shooting an animal with a dart is not like the movies. you hit the animal, the animal becomes very aggitated, very angry, very quickly. And it doesn't just fall down in one minute and go to sleep," Hughan said. 

La Cañada sees occasional visits from mountain lions, bears, and other wildlife. City Councilman Don Voss pointed out during a heated discussion last year over the that La Cañada is based at the foothills of the Angeles National Forest, and residents will have run-ins with wildlife. 

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