Deer defenders cause traffic jam — but no arrests — at Shawnee Mission Park

On Saturday afternoon, when law enforcement officers informed Jason Miller that he couldn’t use an amplification device on the grounds of Shawnee Mission Park, the animal rights activist politely crossed the street with his megaphone, continuing to protest in a legal manner.

But between his calls to save the deer from the impending harvest in the 1,200-acre Johnson County green space, Miller confided that Sunday would be different. He had an action in mind that would likely lead to his arrest.

At 4:30 p.m. the next afternoon, a dozen Bite Club members gathered in the parking lot of a nearby Wendy’s. Anticipating he’d be arrested in a defiant act of civil disobedience, Miller left his car and hitched a ride up the hill with another activist. Again, in the interest of caution, the caravan parked on a side street (ignoring a neighbor’s demand: “Get off my lawn, dumb shit!”).

But when the activists unfurled their 10-foot banner and stood in the middle of a street leading into Shawnee Mission Park, the cops had no interest in hauling Miller to jail. As a dozen Bite Club members tried to “close the park for cruelty,” the police officers calmly diverted traffic to avoid the activists.

Here’s the activists’ video. Read more about Jason Miller and Bite Club in the October 8 issue of The Pitch.