Groundhog Day whodunnit: the mayor, "inadvertent rodenticide," and 'Chuck'

A sudden death. A mayor in yellow suede gloves. A fall — or was it two? — that might have proved fatal. And a groundhog named Chuck, until it wasn’t.

On Thursday, Mayor Bill de Blasio stood accused of inadvertent rodenticide stemming from an episode in February, when Mr. de Blasio, amid the pageantry of Groundhog Day shadow-watching, dropped the star of the early-morning event.

According to an article in The New York Post, Charles G. Hogg, known as Chuck to Staten Island Zoo visitors, died one week later of “internal injuries” that were “consistent with a fall.” Also, Chuck was a female named Charlotte. The article alleged a “cover-up” by the zoo on both fronts.
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wfgodot said:

Bumping this because cases of (cough-cough) "inadvertent rodenticide" deserve a concerned audience.

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jjenny said:

Poor Chuck.

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Death and ensuing scandal
The original Wiarton Willie lived to the advanced age of 22, and was found dead only two days before Groundhog Day in 1999. The organizers were unable to find a replacement, and instead marked Groundhog Day by revealing "Willie" in a coffin. He had been dressed in a tuxedo, had coins over his eyes, and a carrot between his paws. A scandal ensued when it became known that the real Willie had in fact decomposed, and the body in the coffin was that of an older, stuffed groundhog. The Associated Press was obliged to issue a retraction on its wires.
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