Deer attacks woman on Colorado basketball court, wildlife officials say

ASPEN, Colo. — This was a dangerous type of charge on a basketball court.

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A young mule deer buck attacked and injured a woman on a basketball court in Colorado, wildlife officials said.

According to a news release from Colorado Parks and Wildlife, the buck approached a group of people on a basketball court at Aspen’s Rio Grande Park on Friday.

Wildlife officials said a woman was backing away to give the animal some space and shielded her face, but she suffered minor injuries to her arms when the buck charged, the news release stated.

The woman refused medical attention when wildlife officials arrived at the scene.

“After interviewing the victim and several witnesses, officers determined the victim did nothing wrong and was just in the wrong place at the wrong time,” the CPW wrote. “According to witnesses, the deer had approached the group before the attack, which suggested that it had become habituated to human presence and lacked the natural fear that wildlife should have towards humans.”

The animal was located by wildlife officials. After exhibiting the same lack of fear toward humans that he did earlier, the buck was captured and later euthanized because of its “unusual and extremely aggressive behavior.”

“Deer attacks are rare but can happen, resulting in serious injuries,” CPW said in a statement. “This incident serves as an important reminder that wild animals should always be treated as such.”