if u think its that easy i wanna see u catch a snake like that... there are plenty of times people know how to handle snakes like that get killed just like someone that works wit fire works ya they know how to handle them but it can backfire its very unpredictable at times

Whats the big deal about killinga dangerous snake?It couldve killed someone if it had bitten someone.I beg the differ that this man did something wrong. Dont forget GOD gave us wisdom over all animals that can harm us, so if it was killed so be it so shall it be done. we kill cows and pigs and stuff them down our stomachs. Maybe some of you would like to put him down yours.lmao

First, to rose about the snake being an endangered species, well its not. Before you make some ignorant post, next time get some facts, and anyone(kay) that would not have killed that snake is just as dumb as rose for her comment. Use common sense people, do you really want something that dangerous roaming your local neighborhoods. There would have been no logical way to safely capture the snake alive.

hey, ppl are stating this was an endangered species - if this was a wide known fact (like most folks know the Bald Eagle is & has protection, including Federal prison time if killed) then this dude, a descendent president-killer, will & should face charges! Rise up St Augustine city and make sure folks are educated, Rescue #s are available, and this Booth is charged for killing an endangered species.
Second, that was a pretty damn big snake - 7ft 3 in! W T F helped it get so big? eating rodents/squirrels only? BS! it was eating stray dogs, cats & maybe even aligators too! crazy! and yes, scary...if it would have STRUCK anybody, you have less than an hour to get help...a child could have died regardless if the parent was neglectful or what have you - lightening strikes ya'll - quick, fast & your dead...

First, I grew up in Wyoming and there are a lot of rattlesnakes there. They do rattle their tail to warn things then strike. Second, do any of you realize how powerful that snake was and if he even had a place to put it in his vehicle how the hell was he supposed to do that and to relocate, the chances of it coming right back are very good. And that snake would not have cared if it was a rabbit, dog, kid whatever, if it was hungry it had a large menu. For some of you, there is a saying, better to keep your mouth shut and appear stupid than to open it and remove all doubt.

That poor snake would have been worth over $50.000 alive to a university

just for the record they didnt kill it, so stop whining about killing it, they have it alive for study. even still something this massive and dangerous should be dead NAO

I perosnally live in the area in an apartment complex near where the snake was found. The snake may have escaped if it wasn't killed. I have a little dog that could have been breakfast to this large worthless waiste of space. I think it was a smart move to kill it not just for my dogs sake but for the sake of a small child that could have been attacked. Everyone is failing to realize that the snake was found in a housing developement next to an apartment complex where kids are at play all the time. SMART MOVE!

That was a great thing he did.Someone could have got hurt. Thank you for killing that snake your atrue hero. That snake could have went all around the world and killed lots of people

I Really hope that the meat was not wasted and that someone was allowed to take it home for the table.

I have read a number of the posts here about how stupid the trapper was to kill the snakes. While I would prefer to relocate the snakes verses killing them, maybe there is something missing in the story. Maybe he didn't have a choice do tot he size of the snakes and the normal equipment that is required to catch normal size snakes. Remember people, he would have to put the snakes into a tank or bag without getting bite or anyone else getting bite. No where in the story does it seem to ask that simple question as to why they killed it verse letting it go. Maybe there is a reason?

omg its a big snake! so what? we have all kinds of snake around my house, all we do is put back in the woods and nobody, not our dogs, cats, or 3 yr old niece have been bitten. The "trapper" who killed that snake was retarded and can get in trouble for killing a endangered species. All he had to do was catch it- which a "professional trapper" could of easily done- and put it in a zoo or relocate it into the wild where no retarded humans are. I swear humans are retarded.

I would love to have seen pic of rattles and known how many there were.

Christ most of you are idiots.

1. That snake was not big enough to eat a full-grown dog, much less a human. Rattlers prey mainly on mammals in the wild, and do not have an affinity for human flesh. If you are believe they do, don't have kids. Can't have people like you messing up the gene pool...

2. EDB's are endangered. 'Nuff said. As a previous poster mentioned, a "professional" would have caught that snake and relocated it far away from humanity, where it would be free to roam and grow another 7 feet. That snake is a magnificent example of nature at it's finest. And don't give me the excuse that "he had to act fast". Police were already there; if they were intelligent officers, the area should already have been cordoned off and innocent bystanders would have had plenty of distance between themselves and the offending animal. Professional reptile "wranglers" understand the danger their jobs entail, as well as the relative quickness with which most snakes can move. Tell you what, race that 7-foot beast with a 5-foot black racer. Not only will the racer beat the rattler by a mile, but any self-respecting reptile trapper would be able to engage and successfully capture either species. So, if you can "race a racer", there's no reason you can't get an angle on a huge rattler.

3. Snakes kill people because people encroach on their habitat, or they decide to play with them. You're either walking were they live and not looking or you just "had to get a little closer". Now, in instances like this, sure the risk is greater, but the fact of the matter is that snake wouldn't have harmed a soul unless someone got close enough. Newsflash, WE AREN'T THE SUPREME BEINGS WE THINK WE ARE. Society needs to realize we're nothing more than animals ourselves (whole 'nother topic) and it wasn't until we became self-sufficient that we started to enact our dominion over everything. As far as I'm concerned, these snakes and other animals have just as much right to certain areas as we humans do. The state of human society right now is downright despicable...if anybody needs a wake-up call on that point, just watch any of the inane reality tv shows on right now. We truly are a classless, unintelligent, and degrading society. For someone to say that "Gators over 6' and ratlesnakes this big all need to be turned into pocketbooks, belts and fried gator tail" just proves my point. Seriously, people like Escoe3 lack any class whatsoever, and don't contribute to our society in any way. I hope you don't have kids, but if you unfortunately do, I bet I can take a damn good guess as to how well they're doing in school....

I've said my piece. The snake should have been relocated, plain and simple. Anyone who says otherwise, you're an idiot. And no, you can't argue that point, because deep down, you know you are.

Gators over 6' and ratlesnakes this big all need to be turned into pocketbooks, belts and fried gator tail. There is plenty of room away from my house for them to live. And when they come close, they're dumb, dangerous and delicious.
Anybody that would have allowed that snake to escape has never seen the damage it can do.

But how did he kill the snake by his self. He would half to have someone to help he would proubly have 5 to 6 men to help to kill that big rattle snake.

Yeah, easterns are endangered, and I'd like to see 'em around as much as anyone. However, they are also extremely venemous, perhaps more than any other species of rattlesnake. So, to leave a venemous snake alone in a crowded public area to go where it wants just because its endangered? Really, are you serious? besides, I wouldn't depend on antivenin as a 'bail-out'. While it works in many cases its not a sure-fire solution. I mean, the serum comes from horses so there are several potential adverse reactions.

@DavieDave, how do you know there is 4'-5' of the snake on the ground? FAIL

Anyone who thinks this snake was going to eat people are, well, ignorant. It's a known fact that rattlesnakes live in the same small area their entire lives.

If this snake was such a killer, then why hasn't anyone been harmed by it? It didn't grow that big in a few months. It's been living in that same are for years and years and not one person has been bitten or killed and eaten.(LMAO on the eaten one)

They should have let it be.

I'm going to start gigging stray dogs that enter my yard. Another well-known fact is that more people have been KILLED by dogs in the U.S.A. in 2009 than have been killed by snakes in the last 30 YEARS! Dogs are way more dangerous than snakes and I really hate and fear dogs. So why is it illegal for me to gig and kill any dog, that I feel is threatening me and my family, in my own yard?

If I did actually gig and kill a dog on my own propery, I'd be arrested on animal abuse/cruelty charges and all the idiots praising the idiot that killed this snake would be calling me an animal abuser. And that's how I feel about the senseless killing of this, and any other, wild snake. I know ppl are scared of them, but, seriously, how hard is it to walk away from it?

This guy should be arrested for killing an endangered species. Yet some ppl are praising the man. The ppl who think this was a good deed make me sick.

I spotted this snake a couple of months ago crossing the dirt road about 300 yards north of where he was killed. Truly a magnificent animal. I think I understand why Mr. Booth killed him. Probably a reflex act. The danger potential was much too high him to let this snake escape capture only to come back another day. They say hindsight is 20/20... I think he could have made much more than 700$ if he were kept alive.

You have GOT to be freaking kidding!! A pet? Ever been outside? Enjoyed nature?

I really wish people would be more responsible with their pets. Obviously, someone left the lid off of its cage or failed to feed him in a timely manner. Maybe that guys room mate woke up before it pulled the anaconda mambo number five dance on him. The poor snake felt compelled to take a romp through the neighborhood looking for something to eat.

If I were a betting man, and I am... I would bet that the owners of this monster snake did not have it spayed or neutered. Theres no telling how many thousands of these guys are running around the prime outlet mall and Tuscany with this snake's genetics running through their stone cold veins.

Shame, shame, shame.

Assanine to kill the snake, everybody with any sense knows a rattler will run from you if given a chance and if he didn't want to run it could easily have been captured. When Mr. Booth said he "didn't have time to think", he knows himself very well.

That snake wasn't in the neighborhood visiting friends, he was looking for his next meal. I'm sure that Rover or fluffy would have done just fine.

True story.This guy had a pet snake he took it to the vet to find out why he wasn't eating and was losing weight. The vet thought he had a blockage so he told him to do couple things to give the pet relief. The man called the vet to let him know that his snake was still losing weight he thought maybe he (snake) was depressed. He told the vet that the snake would get out of his cage every nite and the (snake)seemed to take a liking to his roomate, because he would find the snake in the bed streched out next to his roomate. The vet said Oh that explains why he was losing weight. The snake was sizing him up and making room so he could eat him. WHO KNOWS WHAT THIS SNAKE WAS THINKING!!!!

first of all anyone that thinks this snake was big enough to eat a person, even a newborn infant, it's camera play, the snake is on a stick and closer to the camera than the people in the background, making it appear larger than it is, even if it was a 7 footer which is huge for the species... secondly the snake wasn't going to kill anyone and at worst SHOULD have been taken to the zoo. I am more afraid of dogs than snakes, so maybe I will start driving through neighborhoods killing stray dogs, they kill more people than snakes. It's also horrible that there are laws that prevent me from approaching a protected species LIKE THIS ONE with a camera, but a guy kills one and gets his picture taken. Ignorance is truly bliss

Idiots who kill because of THEIR fears shouldn't be allowed to pack weapons! I agree the poor snake should've been taken to the alligator farm and place in protection for all to see! Hey, I am NOT a snake person - but this creature was OLD and should've been allowed to LIVE - SHAME ON YOU Brandon!

Why did Mr Booth kill the snake??? All those uninformed individuals out there saying "It could have killed someone". How foolish!!! At the size it was found out, it had the potential to kill a person many times over. How many people did it actually kill? NONE!!! Why? The eastern diamondback rattlesnake is a docile species that has no interest in biting a person, insofar as it is a waste of venom. As for the person who said "It could eat a person.", that is also uninformed idiocy. Perhaps a very small person, but if your infants are out of your care in ANY environment where ANY potentially dangerous wildlife might be found, then that parent should be brought up on neglect charges. He caught it alive, so why not transfer it to a zoo? Why not use it to educate people away from their ignorance of these magnificent animals?

Are you people crazy!!!. This snake was big enought to eat a human. It should have been killed. Thanks to the men that caught and killed this snake before it killed someone.

WHAT??? FORGET ABOUT THE RECORD, SOMEONE COULD OF BEEN KILLED, PEOPLE JUST DON'T THINK SOMETIME.

Why did he kill this friend of Maximo? He had to have this baby fileted and on ice prior to the concession stand opening up on Friday night at St Augustine H.S. The yellow jackets take on Ponte Vedra Friday night and 7 p.m. They will have a sushi bar and deep fryer featuring specials on local favorite cuisine. Deep fried rattle snake and a bottle of San Sebastian winerie's best for $10. Rumor has it that Brandon is making a special trip to the Alligator farm around midnight tonight so he can fill out the menu. Go support the yellow jackets and pick up a special or two.

You're all crazy. This snake could've easily killed one of my toddlers, or me for that matter. The only good 7 foot long venomous snake is a dead one.

Should have taken him over to the Alligator Farm. Would have been a great addition to their snake collection.

I dont understand why we continue to destroy these large and rare creatures...i.e. this snake and the 16 ft aligator last week