An East Texas sheriff’s deputy had a heart-stopping roadside surprise when a deer he believed was dead suddenly jumped up, prompting the startled officer to yell and bolt back toward his patrol vehicle in a dashcam moment that rapidly spread across social media.
The unexpected encounter was recorded by the deputy’s dash camera and later posted to Facebook by Trinity County Sheriff Woody Wallace, who quipped that some moments really can “scare the heck out of a person.”
Wallace leaned into the humor of the viral video, urging viewers to “[w]atch when he encounters what he thinks is a dead deer until it comes back to life!”
The clip begins with the deputy cautiously walking toward a doe lying still near the edge of the road, apparently lifeless.
The deer was lying motionless along the roadside as the deputy moved in for a closer look. (Sheriff Woody Wallace via Storyful)
As the deputy gets closer to examine the animal, the deer suddenly springs to life.
The startled deputy lets out a scream and races back toward his patrol vehicle.
The deputy left his patrol vehicle to check on the animal when it suddenly sprang up, shocking the lawman. (Sheriff Woody Wallace via Storyful)
“OK, we’re good,” the deputy says with a laugh after recovering from the surprise.
The deer is last seen sitting up on the side of the road before the video ends.
The deer was last seen sitting up on the roadside before the video ends. Trinity County Sheriff Woody Wallace said the deer “made a full recovery” and escaped into nearby woods. (Sheriff Woody Wallace via Storyful)
“Instead of a citation, the ‘suspect’ made a four-legged getaway and vanished into the East Texas woods,” Wallace wrote on Facebook.
“Just another night shift where anything can happen,” the sheriff added.
Wallace later assured viewers that the doe was unharmed and “made a full recovery.”
The unexpected roadside encounter quickly found an audience online, with Wallace saying the video has been viewed more than 10 million times.