No, the top of his left ear was not shot off or lost in a street fight. It was clipped by the DVM that took his balls away, vaccinated him, treated him for fight wounds with antibiotics and declared that this cat was the most gentle street tom she had ever seen.
The clipped ear lets the world know that the feral cat is neutered and can't be rabid.
When Sad Face was returned to my property (he doesn't live here but he got trapped here and my permission was given) Barbara from cattrappers.org told me that everybody that came into contact with Sad Face adored him. He'd have been a great and good big house cat if he had been taken in as a kitten.