Photo courtesy Missouri Dpt. of Conservation

HOUSE SPRINGS, Mo. (AP) — Conservation officers are investigating after a rare albino deer was shot and killed by a hunter in eastern Missouri.

The deer was killed Tuesday near a subdivision and a school in the Jefferson County town of House Springs, south of St. Louis. The Missouri Department of Conservation is investigating.

The deer was shot about 500 feet from a middle school, far enough away that the shooting apparently didn’t violate a state law that prohibits the discharge of a firearm near a school.

Some residents who live near the site told KMOV they enjoyed the sight of the white deer in their neighborhood. Others expressed concern that someone was hunting so close to homes and the school.