Credit: Tom Sofield/LevittownNow.com
A former Bristol Township animal control officer was accepted into a program for first-time nonviolent offenders Tuesday in relation to his botched attempt to help injured seagulls.
William G. Kurko, 76, of Bristol Township’s Levittown section, was facing trial on charges animal cruelty and of neglect of animal vet care, according to a court docket.
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Ron Elgart, Kurko’s attorney, said his client was accepted Tuesday for the pre-trial Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition (ARD) program for first-time, nonviolent offenders. Once the ARD program is completed successfully, a defendant can file a petition to get their record expunged.
As part of the agreement for ARD, Kurko has turned in his state license to act as a wildlife trapper, Elgart said.
According to charging documents filed by the Pennsylvania SPCA’s law enforcement arm, Kurko removed the wings of injured seagulls using scissors at his home in November 2018. The birds were hurt when an unidentified person drove their vehicle through a crowd of them at the Levittown Town Center parking lot in Tullytown Borough in November 11.
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Kurko told an SPCA investigator that he responded to the shopping center after a call from police. He found nine dead seagulls and four injured seagulls, which he took to his home. He then used poultry scissors to cut off their broken wings. The badly injured birds all later died. Kurko said he did not administer pain medication or medication to stop bleeding.
Kurko told the investigator he was aware he could take the birds to AARK Wildlife Rehabilitation Center in Chalfont, but it was more than an hour drive.
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An investigation confirmed with the Pennsylvania Game Commission that Kuro’s permit to handle nuisance wildlife would not allow him to maintain seagulls.
Tullytown police said they called Kurko because they knew he advertised wildlife trapping and removal services. They said Kurko told them he could assist with the seagulls.
Elgart said Kurko has worked with animals for a long time and was doing his best to help the seagulls.
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“He thought he was doing the right thing,” Elgart said.
Kurko hasn’t worked as an animal control officer in Bristol Township in several years. Although when he did, he helped with baby ducks trapped in storm drains, dealt with dog attacks, took part in the three-hour-long rescue of a kitten in Croydon, and helped track an escaped Burmese python that reportedly ate a cat in the township.
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Seagulls and other migratory birds are protected under the federal Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918.
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