Oakland residents seek answers for dead peafowl

Oakland’s Maureen Jacobson constantly sees people coming down her street in hopes of finding peafowl. 

She cares for the peafowl and collects their bright, beautiful feathers to give out to children or families coming down her street in hopes of catching a glimpse of  about 10 peafowl that roam her street.

So when Jacobson heard in January 12 peafowl were found dead on Deer Island, an unincorporated area of Oakland, she was shocked and angry — even more so when she found out the number of dead peafowl had reached 30 in a matter of two weeks.

Jacobson said residents of Deer Island were seeking her advice and guidance; Jacobson is known as the “peacock lady.” She had done a plethora of research to help Oakland become a sanctuary for all bird species. 

“I was very angry and I was upset, and it was horrifying to hear that a human being can have no feelings but to just kill these beautiful animals,” she said. 

Jacobson said a necropsy was conducted on one of the dead peafowl, and it was discovered that the peafowl was killed by antifreeze and rat poison. Otherwise, the peafowl were “very healthy,” she said. 

Through her research, Jacobson said she learned peafowl aren’t prone to having diseases.

“When there are 30 that just drop over, there’s a reason for that,” Jacobson said. “And when the toxicology report came back with antifreeze and rat poison, they knew that someone or some people were ending their lives. And that’s not an answer. The answer to thin out an area is to simply hire trappers to come in and bring them right down the road because we’re a sanctuary town. They could have just placed them right here and let them be free. They didn’t have to kill them.”

She said since the 30 were killed, there have not been any other peafowl killed to her knowledge, which she attributed to people getting the word out about the incidents and wanting justice. 

The Bord of Directors of Deer Island Homeowners Association of Killamey has a resolution stating “owners shall refrain from intentionally hurting, wounding or killing the wildlife in the community” and “incidences where the life or health of the wildlife may be threatened or endangered” should be reported in a timely manner.

Jacobson said Deer Island residents wanted to speak to her anonymously and were hesitant to approach law enforcement as they were scared of repercussions. 

“They were literally afraid that people would find out who they were and go to their homes, kill their animals, or possibly even harm their families and their children,” she said. “It is that deep.”

With Deer Island being unincorporated, Jacobson said jurisdiction did not fall under the Oakland Police Department but rather the Orange County Sheriff’s Office. 

Jacobson said she’s been in contact with Matt Thorne, a deputy with the Sheriff’s Office’s Agriculture Crimes Unit. She said Thorne is on the hunt for answers and will talk with witnesses or anyone who has information. 

Although Jacobson said she is going to take a step back now with law enforcement looking into the matter, she will continue to follow up with the investigation because she wants answers and justice.