Accidental shooting

Ranger Rick

Ranger Rick

Member
A very disturbing call this weekend from one of my coworkers. His son, in North Dakota duck hunting with buddies, was shot through the abdomen by a deer hunter on Saturday. Apparently their hunting party started donning blaze when deer hunters close by started shooting. While putting on the blaze, he was shot.

By nature, I'm very nervous about people being safe in the field/woods and know several people who have been shot while bird or duck hunting. Also one person I know shot in the lower leg while deer hunting. People tend to think it could never happen to them.

This one is freaking me out. Shot clean through, not damaging any vital organs. In one side and out the other below the rob cage. Knowing what kind of damage a high powered rifle can do, I can only think it's a miracle the kid is still alive.

Please, please be careful out there. Know your target and what is beyond.
 
Similar incident happened in ks a few yrs ago. Guy thought decoys were the real thing out in a field and shot is rifle out the window of his truck attempting to shoot what he thought was a real goose.

Ended up missing and killing one of the young goose hunters.

Sad deal.
 
More information on this shooting direct from one of the guys in the victims hunting party:
Hardly an accurate report
________________________________________
I wish no one has to hear their buddy scream for his life in the middle of a cut corn field!

ALL precautions were taken. Orange. 8 (Thats right! Eight men) in the field walking around picking up decoys, no one was concealed. Truck parked in middle of field near by.

4 deer hunters standing shoulder to shoulder. One decided to go ahead and shoot. The victim was less than 275 yards.

Lesson learned.
No matter the precautions, we can't control or prevent careless ignorant actions of others.

To sum up the carelessness:

After all the duck hunters' yelling and screaming in response to that single shot...

The four deer hunters turned around and retreated.

Because of the calm, quick, fluid, organized, response by the 7 healthy duck hunters, the young man will get to go home.

Think this can never happen to you or your group, like I did for the last 19 years of duck hunting early November(almost 40 years for a couple men in the group)?

It can.

It just happened to our group.

Our prayers are with "Buffalo" for a quick and full recovery so we can see him back in the blind again next year!
Just not during Deer season

The sheriffs remarks were poorly chosen. Knowing your target and beyond is much easier than trying to dodge a bullet.
 
very sad.....its a shame that we have to worry about such things happening but we do....I wish your buddy a speedy recovery and more great days in the field. so...they didn't find the shooter then? that SUCKS
 
Any thought on why the gunman decided to shoot into the group? I call him a gunman because he was intent on killing a person. He wasn't a deer hunter or any other type of hunter. This guy was looking to shoot and kill someone. At least thats what he sounds like to me.........
 
A fella was killed about a month ago on the Winnebago Indian Reservation just north of Omaha NE. He was part of a party hunting deer got caught in a cross fire and was hit in the buttocks he was then rushed to a nearby hospital where he was pronounced dead. Apparently he was shot by a younger member of the hunting party they tried tourniquets etc. etc. but all attempts to save his life failed. Very sad indeed! Please always be sure of whats beyond your target!
 
I sat in my deer stand about 10 yrs ago and heard an approaching helicopter.

It whizzed right over my head close enough that after it went by I could feel the wash off the rotor, I watched it drop down on the next farm over.

They had been doing a deer drive of a low swampy area and a deer had jumped up. A young man around 20 shot at the deer, missed and hit his father in the chest with a shotgun slug.

I watched the copter land, all the emergency vehicles arrive, rush to get him on the copter, everything.

Scares the crap out of me every time I walk to and from the stand.
 
Deer hunters and bird hunters are diffferent types, the former seemingly more trigger happy, Dick Cheney being a notable exception. I recall a retiring Kansas game warden's magazine article that said he cannot recall in his 20+ year career ever checking a deer camp where everyone and everthing was legal. Not once in over 20 years.
 
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BritChaser said:
Deer hunters and bird hunters are diffferent types, the former seemingly more trigger happy, Dick Cheney being a notable exception.
Click to expand...

I respectfully disagree. I've been in the field on several occasions over my lifetime pheasant hunting and in the boat fishing while there were duck hunters around that shot at birds and sprayed shot very close to where I was. I never had even a close incident while gun, bow, or blackpowder deer hunting.

Cheap shot to use Cheney as your "notable exception".
 
I have a friend who was shot on two separate occasions by other duck hunters. He no longer hunts. Another acquaintance who I've bird hunted with was shot by another hunter in his party. He shot a grouse and was taking the bird from his dog's mouth when another bird flushed and the trigger-happy guy blasted him. F'ed him up real bad.

My dad still has a few #8 shot in his head from when his brother shot him years ago while rabbit hunting. Dad, in turn, shot my dog once. Only a couple pellets, but a horrendous experience all the same. He also threw a couple 30-30 rounds within 15' of me while deer hunting a few years ago, while I hid behind a big tree.

It happens guys. And happens all too often. Even one accidental shooting is too many.

In this recent case, I'm also calling foul on the local sheriff, who told lies to the press and refuses to further the case against the shooter. The local DA is awol on this, too. Protecting their local buddies. I wonder what action they would have taken if it was the out of state guys who were responsible? ND Fish and Game isn't taking this lying down and conducting their own investigation, so hopefully it's not over for the shooter.
 
BritChaser said:
Deer hunters and bird hunters are diffferent types, the former seemingly more trigger happy, Dick Cheney being a notable exception.
Click to expand...


Firearm Deer season is short. There's always a large number of people hitting the woods/fields within a short period of time around N. America. Maybe this has something to do with making it seem as if Deer hunters are "different":confused:; High numbers of deer hunters plus a short season?

Whether deer hunters or bird hunters, there's always a (very!) few slobs floating around. Plus, all the deer hunters I know are bird hunters too. They're all safe.:D

Nick
 
1pheas4 said:
Firearm Deer season is short. There's always a large number of people hitting the woods/fields within a short period of time around N. America. Maybe this has something to do with making it seem as if Deer hunters are "different":confused:; High numbers of deer hunters plus a short season?

Whether deer hunters or bird hunters, there's always a (very!) few slobs floating around. Plus, all the deer hunters I know are bird hunters too. They're all safe.:D

Nick
Click to expand...

I think the mentality of slob deer hunters and slob bird hunters are very similar. The difference is one has a killing range of 30 yards while the other is much farther. There are plenty of accidental shootings during bird season. They just usually don't end as badly.
 
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