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Old April 18, 2011, 04:14 PM   #1
jimpeel
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Hunter mistakes five-year-old boy for turkey

The child suffered several pellet wounds. The hunter is cooperating with authorities.

Thank God he was using a shotgun and not a rifle.

The ranger reiterates the rules on knowing your target and what lies beyond.

Stay safe out there, everyone.

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Old April 18, 2011, 04:52 PM   #2
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I thought he was a deer....


Idiots. Absolute idiots.
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Old April 18, 2011, 04:54 PM   #3
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My son looked nothing like a turkey at age 5.

Turkey hunters are out since last week, they are up top of the valley and down low as my place is off limits. They over do the calls, dont even sound like a turkey and I can smell their ciggarettes down wind.

Easy to see how somone could mistake a kid for a turkey, probabley never ever saw one. a turkey that is. is also why most folks cant get on good hunting land as a hog in tx thread showed.
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Old April 18, 2011, 05:49 PM   #4
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I'm sure glad the 5 yr old will be OK.
This will sound unbelievable,but I remember,late 60's or early 70's,in Colorado,someone thought 2 kids on motorcycles were elk.The outcome was tragic.
I guess I'll just stay grateful for times the habit of safety made up for human error,or when one person with open eyes woke up someone not paying attention.
Yeah,this guy screwed up big time.
I will be safer if I stay humble enough to know it could happen to me,too.
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Old April 18, 2011, 06:51 PM   #5
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Turkey hunters are out since last week, they are up top of the valley and down low as my place is off limits. They over do the calls, dont even sound like a turkey and I can smell their ciggarettes down wind.
You may be able to smell em but a turkey can't.
Sad story, hope he recovers.

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Old April 18, 2011, 10:27 PM   #6
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My wife's X is a turkey, but I would never mistake him for a bird!

This hunter is a careless idiot and should run for vice-prez or some other public office.
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Old April 19, 2011, 09:38 AM   #7
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Only once did I ever see an article in a gun magazine about Hunters shooting things other than game. It was in a 40's/50's American Rifleman magazine.

One account I still remember is of a father and son hunting raccoons. Son was beating the raccoon with the butt of his loaded double barrel shotgun. One barrel went off and killed the son. Dad then picked up junior’s shotgun and continued beating the raccoon with the butt. The second barrel went off in Dad's chest.

These people would be candidates for the Darwin award if they had not been in their graves for 60's years.

I believe the reason I have never seen another accidental shooting article is that instead of increasing safety, detailing all the accounts of morons shooting cars, themselves, others, cows, trees, houses, etc, just increases the perception that hunters are dangerous idiots.

And when turkey hunters shoot five year olds, the perception does not get any better.
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Old April 19, 2011, 01:56 PM   #8
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The hunter is an idiot. But who hunts so close to civilization that a 5 year old can just stumble into your line of fire *** people leave the porch if your going to hunt
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Old April 19, 2011, 06:59 PM   #9
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The hunter is an idiot. But who hunts so close to civilization that a 5 year old can just stumble into your line of fire *** people leave the porch if your going to hunt
The boy was hunting with his father on a small parcel of public land. The boy and his father were both hit by pellets from another hunter that was 50 yards away. None of the hunters were aware anyone else was there hunting. One report I heard was the father was using a gobble call and the other hunter hearing the gobble and seeing something brown about the size of a turkey moving in the brush let one fly. Understandable, but not excusable, the shooter definitely failed to identify his target and made a grave error in judgement. Thankfully, the boy is doing fine and will recover completely.

Gobble calls on public land.........
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Old April 19, 2011, 07:22 PM   #10
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When we start prosecuting these type incidents as the crimes they are, this type of crap will stop happening.

There is absolutely no excuse for this incident, we as hunters are responsible for positively identifying our target and what lies behind. If you can't hunt responsibly, stay home!

I hope the child recovers quickly and fully, with no scars. I hope the idiot shooter gets some jail time and looses his hunting rights for life.
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Old April 20, 2011, 08:24 AM   #11
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+1 Dr. S. The hunter made the classic "sound shot". He heard a gobble, saw a movement and fired. If this happened downtown it would be assault with a deadly weapon.
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Old April 20, 2011, 09:39 AM   #12
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It amazes me that although every year we hear about folks being injured/ killed in brush hunting stupidity (I refuse to call them accidents), dumbasses still blast brush trying to shoot game they cannot visually identify. Negligence while hunting is criminal, and in this case, a near charge of involuntary manslaughter.
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Old April 20, 2011, 09:46 AM   #13
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Since I doubt that anybody will take up for the idiot, I'll drift:

Years and years ago, my father used the "sound shot" idea to his advantage. He had been invited to hunt on a 10,000-acre ranch and arrived to find three other hunters there who he didn't know. Knew nothing of their competence or of their carefulness about safety.

In the course of casual BSing that evening, he extolled the virtues of the "sound shot". Saucer eyes: "Where ya gonna hunt in the morning?"

Three guys sorta wadded up in a hundred-acre corner; my father had the other 9,900 acres to himself.

My father never took a "sound shot" in his life.
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Old April 20, 2011, 11:03 AM   #14
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The shooter is un-deniably the biggest idiot and should be prosecuted. Thats a given.

The boys dad, if gobbling, also needs to learn to hunt on public land. No law against it but this is a good example of why you shouldn't use a gobble call. Hell, I won't even gobble on private land.

Very glad both will be alright.
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Old April 20, 2011, 12:08 PM   #15
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Art. A wise man, your dad.
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Old April 20, 2011, 12:26 PM   #16
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I wear orange

on public land especially while moving. take it off and put it on a tree when I'm parked. otherwise still the shooters responsibility to be sure of his target and beyond. I gotta believe it comes down to an attitude - so hell bent on getting something they're willing to take "iffy" shots. fortunately the vast majority are responsible but it hurts us all with the general public when accidents happen.
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Old April 20, 2011, 12:31 PM   #17
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I stopped turkey hunting on public land a few years ago. These stories are the reason why.
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Old April 20, 2011, 02:18 PM   #18
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Grandpa always told everyone he knew, "If I ever get shot at my police training will kick in and I'll shoot back, and I DONT miss." He never had to shoot back at anyone. I wear orange even if I dont have to. Around here there are too many rich doctors and lawyers that never get into the woods but once a year and thats during hunting season. I actually had a lawyer from Minneapolis ask me at what elevation do deer become elk.

I dont trust anyone, period. If they want to go hunting with me I take them to the range first, not only to see how good they can shoot but how they handle their firearms too. Most of my hunting is done on public land so if someone moves in to the same area Ive been sitting in for 3 hours before they showed up I flash a light into their direction and pronounce that someones in the area and has been since 4 in the morning and if its daylight I just get up and leave after making sure they know Im there and not to shoot me when I get up. I am never hostile or threatening and if they dont leave first I just go. There is enough land around here to hunt I dont need to get shot over some stupid animals.

I second the thought that people should get criminally charged for "accidents". My hunters saftey instructor always told us "There is no such thing as accidents, everything can be prevented."
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Old April 20, 2011, 02:39 PM   #19
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Crap like this is completely inexcusable. The only time I normally hunt public land is for ducks and I won't go until a few weeks into the season anymore. There are just way too many idiots out there. I have had idiots shoot over me trying to hit ducks coming into my decoys and I have had people set up right in front of me no more than 50 yards away. The world is full of stupid people.
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Old April 20, 2011, 03:11 PM   #20
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My son ran into the house last nite told me some guy was climbing over the fence with a gun. Yep, was a turkey hunter had permission told him I just spoke to Mrs. xxx Sunday at the fire station, she said no one was allowed to hunt now her husband is dead.

Happens all the time, 2 weeks will bring the mushroom hunters.....
I let the dogs run then but during hunting season they remain in the kennel.
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Old April 20, 2011, 04:46 PM   #21
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Quote:
Only once did I ever see an article in a gun magazine about Hunters shooting things other than game. It was in a 40's/50's American Rifleman magazine.

One account I still remember is of a father and son hunting raccoons. Son was beating the raccoon with the butt of his loaded double barrel shotgun. One barrel went off and killed the son. Dad then picked up junior’s shotgun and continued beating the raccoon with the butt. The second barrel went off in Dad's chest.

These people would be candidates for the Darwin award if they had not been in their graves for 60's years.

I believe the reason I have never seen another accidental shooting article is that instead of increasing safety, detailing all the accounts of morons shooting cars, themselves, others, cows, trees, houses, etc, just increases the perception that hunters are dangerous idiots.
Actually, shooting oneself or another person whilst using a firearm as a club happens just about every year, sometimes multiple times per year.

I don't know how you have missed seeng articles about hunters shooting thngs other than game. We have a few posted on this forum every year. Do a search on "IHEA" here and you will find quite a few links that include articles on hunters shooting themselves or other people. The IHEA links I have in those go to annual incident reports that document these events annually.

Here is a quick link to the IHEA...
http://www.ihea.com/news-and-events/...orts/index.php
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Old April 21, 2011, 02:03 PM   #22
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It can SOMETIMES be the victim's fault...there have been instances of doglesss bird hunters trailing hunters with dogs, hoping to get a shot at any birds that escape, and they don't notify the hunters with dogs that they are doing this. Add in thick cover & a lack of blaze orange because they want to stay hidden, and it's a recipe for disaster.

There have also been cases of camoflauged bow hunters in tree stands not warning bird hunters that they are up there when they see or hear them approaching, and the one in a million odds come up where the bird flies in the direction of the bowhunter and he actually gets shot.

In cases like that, I don't blame the shooters at all; the victims were hidden and failed to notify the other hunters of their presence and clearly did nothing to dismantle the dangerous situation even though it was 100% in their power to do so, and if they had then the accident would have been avoided.
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Old April 21, 2011, 03:39 PM   #23
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You may not blame the hunter, but the courts and insurance usually will. It is not the victim's obligation to notify the hunter, but the hunter's obligation not to shoot the wrong thing. It might be nice if the camo'd archer warned the bird hunters not to shoot him out of the tree, but that isn't always an option, especially if he doesn't know they are there.

It is 100% in the hunter's power not to shoot the wrong things, including other hunters.
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Old April 21, 2011, 04:42 PM   #24
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You may not blame the hunter, but the courts and insurance usually will.
There is always an investigation following a hunting "accident", and it is not uncommon for the investigatng officers to declare that the shooter was not at fault. The two examples I gave fall into such findings. If a bird gets up, and the shooter fires at it, with nothing but tree tops and sky as the backdrop, then you simply can't blame the hunter if there happens to be a bowhunter in camo in one of those trees who never spoke up. Are we to ban bird hunting in forested areas, otherwise, and only allow it in open fields? That would remove HUGE tracts in most states, and completely eliminate hunting for several species such as grouse and woodcock.

Quote:
It is 100% in the hunter's power not to shoot the wrong things, including other hunters.
We may have to agree to disagree on this. In the case above, you can't expect a ground hunter to scout out every tree in the area for treestand hunters with a fine tooth comb before doing any shooting; it's simply unrealistic. And if a hunter is being secretly shadowed, and in hilly country where he believes that he is firing in a safe upward direction, well then the shadowees have created the dangerous situation. In heavily forested areas, there is an understanding that all parties let each other know of their presences when at all possible. A whistle is a very handy piece of equipment for this...

In both cases, the investigation findings that the shooter was not at fault is proof enough for me that it is not always 100% possible to blame the shooter, and that sometimes it is even the "victim's" fault.
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Old April 21, 2011, 10:15 PM   #25
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assault with a deadly weapon.
Here its aggravated battery but it wouldn't apply had it happened where I am from.

§33. Battery defined

Battery is the intentional use of force or violence upon the person of another; or the intentional administration of a poison or other noxious liquid or substance to another.

Acts 1978, No. 394, §1.

Most all incidents like this are considered accidental till evidence of intent is found.

This is the only criminal penalty I found for shooting someone while hunting.(hunting regulation excluded)

§501. Killing or injuring a person while hunting; penalty for failure to render aid

Whoever, while taking any bird or mammal, kills or injures another person by the use of any firearm, bow and arrow, spear, slingshot, or other weapon or device used in such taking, and who knowingly either abandons such person or fails to render to such injured person all necessary aid possible under the circumstances, shall be punished by a fine of not more than five hundred dollars.

Acts 1962, No. 446, §1.


Quote:
It is 100% in the hunter's power not to shoot the wrong things, including other hunters.
Again here in Louisiana we are a contributary state what that means is you may win a suit but the judge can still find you partially at fault. In this case the shooter could be found at fault but the shootee wasn't wearing orange.
A judge could say the shooter was 70% at fault and only liable for that amount and the shootee picks up the other 30%. Or 80/20 100/00 and so on.

Accidents happen and if you don't belive in em, bad stuff happens.
Be careful out there!
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