Cops find injured hawk BY CHRIS GAETANO Staff Writer EDISON- An Edison police officer rescued an injured red-tailed hawk that was sitting outside the Edison police building on March 16. Around 11:45 in the morning, Patrolman Frank Vargas saw the injured bird "just sitting there," according to police reports. He contacted Lt. Bruce Polkowitz, who told Varga to see if he could keep the hawk from running away. Once Polkowitz saw the hawk, he recalled an organization called Raptor Trust, which rehabilitates wild birds, and called them. Adoctor there told him to carefully pick the bird up with a blanket and then place it in a box, which Polkowitz did. After doing so, he was asked whether anyone could take the bird to the Raptor Trust, in Millington. Varga took the hawk there to be treated. Dr. Len Soucy, of the Raptor Trust, said that when police arrived, one could tell the hawk had a broken wing just by looking.He said it was decided to wait until the next day to do X-rays to confirm this, however, because the animal was probably stressed and frightened, and placing it under an Xray machine could make things worse. The next day, the hawk was placed under anesthesia and examined. Soucy said that other than the broken wing, it was a perfectly healthy bird. However, the wing was the main problem. Whether it was through hitting a window or being hit by a car, all the bones in the hawk's left wing were broken, some suffering compound fractures and others being shattered. It was also found that there was blood in the animal's mouth as well. Sourcy said the hawk would only be able to be saved through "massive surgery," which would probably necessitate the eventual amputation of the wing itself. This, he said, was actually "borderline illegal," since one cannot cut the wings off birds and keep themin captivity. It was concluded that the only humane option was to euthanize. "I wish it could have been a better outcome," said Soucy. He said the body would probably be donated to the New Jersey State Museum in Trenton for either research or educational purposes.