Know Your Target!

BlueWater · 09-30-2002, 01:23 PM

There is a lesson to be learned here.

Link to "Hunting accident"

BlueWater.

[ 09-30-2002, 02:25 PM: Message edited by: BlueWater ]

Bait O' Eggs · 09-30-2002, 01:28 PM

That is really sad :depressed:

That is the first accident of the year I have heard of in Oregon. I am sure I will hear more before the end of the seasons. :depressed: :depressed:

You cant bring them bullets back, once you pull the trigger. [img]graemlins/stupid.gif[/img]

skein · 09-30-2002, 02:35 PM

I wonder if that "bear" was wearing hunter orange???

After years of bowhunting - got tired of hunting in summer weather - it was hard to slip on the orange vest and hat of a rifle hunter. But you know, it's kinda like being out on the bar without a lifejacket. It doesn't guarantee your safety, but it sure improves the odds. You have to dress for the occasion!

My sympathies to his family, his loved ones, and even to the one who pulled the trigger. Several lives were ruined in that single moment. :depressed:

Skein

[ 09-30-2002, 03:36 PM: Message edited by: skein ]

GutshotApe · 09-30-2002, 02:46 PM

When upland bird hunting with others we always wear orange hats, at least. Especially when quail & pheasant hunting. Orange hats have saved a lot of hunters from being accidentally patterned by their partner

.

Megabites · 09-30-2002, 03:55 PM

My opinion is that most hunting "accidents" - really aren't!

I wonder if they went to High school together, maybe he stole his girlfriend back then.

Either that or if you can't tell the difference between a bear and a man. STAY HOME!!!

Not only that but the last time I checked the regs you can't take a bear cub or a sow with a cub. If this guy didn't look closly enough to tell this was a man not a bear how could he have known that this was not a cub or a sow with a cub.

We need to add a new message Icon of a hand with the finger and thumb in the LOSER position.

Norm · 09-30-2002, 05:39 PM

I know it's not a popular idea among the hunting community, but I'm a firm believer in mandatory hunters safety courses for everyone that hunts. This includes weapons proficiency tests. Maybe it's also time to mandate safety orange during big game rifle seasons. It seems like this happens every year. Unfortunately any bozo over the age of 18 can get a license, a gun, and go hunting. I hope the shooter in this case gets charged with manslauger. If we don't police our own ranks, uncle sam will eventually do it for us.

alwyze fishin · 09-30-2002, 06:56 PM

Well megabites to me sounds like you have done this idea of yours or thought about it.

norm before your ture in your plea do you know the true story ar just what you what to beleave.

We are all and I mean ALL not perfect. And if you can sit there and tell me you have NEVER made a bad chioce I will stand up and call you a what you are and you know what that is.

It sad time for the families of the lost one and for the guy how pulled the trigger.

If it comes down to it and he is in the wrong he needs to pay for the crime.

Tell that is made clear let the right people find out .

I see none of you need be on a court case

willametteriveroutlaw · 09-30-2002, 07:00 PM

If you ever want to see why this happens look at the line of drunken idiots that line up for tags, rifles, and ammo the night before the western general opener. If anyone wonders why quality animals are hard to some by, u can thank them too. If it has horns they shoot it and god forbid they ever draw a doe tag. If it moves in the brush they shoot. I have a doe tag, just to ensure that I have meat if I don't get a big one. The bottom line is that 90% of blacktail hunters don't put in the effort that their quarry deserves. The first year i hunted I was guilty of shooting a small fork, But in the last 5 years I haven't squeezed the trigger on anything smaller than MATURE 3point. Last year I missed a B&C contender.

MasterCaster · 09-30-2002, 08:10 PM

I have to say that I agree totally with this quote from Norm.....

"I know it's not a popular idea among the hunting community, but I'm a firm believer in mandatory hunters safety courses for everyone that hunts. This includes weapons proficiency tests. Maybe it's also time to mandate safety orange during big game rifle seasons."

If everyone took the test and had to prove they can shoot accurately and tell the difference between animals there would be far fewer "accidents" in the woods.

I also believe that if his only excuse was "I thought it was a bear" then he should face the consequences of his actions. There is no excuse for stupidity.

my .02

Jon :smile: :grin: :smile:

GutshotApe · 09-30-2002, 08:10 PM

This reminds me of an incident about 10-15 yrs ago in southern Lane County. A guy and his girlfriend slept in sleeping bags under a tarp in the back of his open pickup truck in the woods. He got up before daylight and went deer hunting in the immediate vicinity. After a while he started back to the rig and when about 100 yds away he saw what he thought was a cougar crouching down alongside the truck :shocked: . He thought it was about to jump into the bed of the truck to attack his girlfriend, so he shot it with his .30-06. Well, it turned out that the "cougar" was the girlfriend who had gotten out of the truck to relieve herself and was squatting down by the rig, wearing a brown coat. She was DOA at the local hospital :depressed: . Don't recall what, if anything, happened to the shooter.

Megabites · 09-30-2002, 08:27 PM

As agree it is a bad time for the victums family, I don't have much sympothy for the shooter.

Alwyse Fishin wrote:

If

it comes down to it and he is in the wrong he needs to pay for the crime.

What do you mean IF he is wrong. No one else pulled the trigger for him. I have been hunting for 24 years now and I have NEVER and I repeat NEVER not known what I was shooting at and what was behind what I was shooting at. The rule is if you aren't sure don't shoot. Better to have missed out on a bear than be living with the fact that someones daddy isn't comming home from hunting. In fact I missed out on a 5X6 bull last year that I had been tracking for days because I was not sure were one of the hunters in my group was at. No worries cuz I still know where he is.

I'm sorry but "not perfect" when hunting to me is being up-wind of my bull or breaking a stick while trying for a closer shot, Not shooting a man thinking it was a bear.

As far as the Jury on this case - hopefully they will at least keep this guy from ever owning a gun again. Like I said before - STAY HOME or STAY in JAIL either way no one else will get hurt.

As a side note, it is these people that are taking our rights and fredoms away. Remember everytime we get a new law we lose a little of our freedom.

KingFisher85 · 09-30-2002, 09:55 PM

HOW can you mistake a bear for a human? Anyone, anyone?
I think its the law over here in Washington that if you are using a rifle to hunt any big game you have to have 500 sq. inches of hunters orange on!
I wait to know what I'm shooting at, but worries me the most is wounding what's behind it. Were does that round go after it rips throughout the deer or any animal? I like to hunt in the timber but like my elks I shot, it was in a clear cut 275 yards away. I looked at her for some time and made sure that my shot was going to be good and what not. Shot two times and both rounds went right throughout her. That got me thinking the "what ifs." EVERYONE out hunting should be thinking about the "what ifs."
Also if you are that blind to mistake a bear for a human, get off the road and get some glasses on!
ALSO them people that like to use you scope to scope out a hill side. Your braking that law over on this side of the river boy! And don't ever scope anyone out in the field. I have heard stories of people scooping other people out and the other guy sees this and shoots the guy that's scooping him out!
You just can't take them bullets back once you pull that trigger.

pdxkevin · 10-01-2002, 04:30 AM

Sad to read that. the first thing I looked for in the article was whether they were wearing blaze orange or not. It is hard to get a full picture from the brief article. I tried to find more on the article elsewhere on the net but no luck.

Was one still hunting in the woods and rattling/calling while the other was approaching from across the way? Was there actually a deer between the two and no one checked what's beyond the target?

In the end... stupid, stupid, stupid. Know your target and wear your orange.

Norm · 10-01-2002, 08:16 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by alwyze fishin:
Well megabites to me sounds like you have done this idea of yours or thought about it.

norm before your ture in your plea do you know the true story ar just what you what to beleave.

We are all and I mean ALL not perfect. And if you can sit there and tell me you have NEVER made a bad chioce I will stand up and call you a what you are and you know what that is.

It sad time for the families of the lost one and for the guy how pulled the trigger.

If it comes down to it and he is in the wrong he needs to pay for the crime.

Tell that is made clear let the right people find out .

I see none of you need be on a court case

<font size="2" face="verdana,arial,helv">The fact is he shot another human because he thought it was a bear, if you can't tell the difference between a bear and a person, you don't belong in the woods with a gun. I've "NEVER" shot anything that I wasn't 100% sure what it was. You have a responsibility when you pull that trigger, you are 100% responsible for where that bullet goes. I've passed a lot of shots in my life because I was not 100% sure and never regretted it. The shooter in this case is 100% responsible for this accident, period.

Firedog · 10-01-2002, 03:46 PM

"If it comes down to it and he is in the wrong he needs to pay for the crime." alwyze fishin

HE WAS WRONG!!!! no question about it. He shot another Human being that he mistook for a bear. How can there be a doubt about him bieng wrong.? I feel for him and his family and the family of the man that was shot. But the shooter was still wrong. KNOW WHAT YOU ARE SHOOTING AT AND WHAT IS BEHIND WHAT YOU SHOOT AT. If there are any questions don't shoot!

monoman · 10-03-2002, 03:28 PM

Is the shooter any different than the drive by shooter that kills a bystander?
I have walked over and had several talks with people about scoping me in! There is a young lad who I know will never do it again, that's if he ever found his rifle that was flung into a draw!

KingFisher85 · 10-03-2002, 06:37 PM

It says right on the back of my Washington Hunters Education Certification card
Responsibility Pledge
As an ethical hunter I accept my responsibility to myself, those with whom I hunt and the Wildlife I pursue.
I will always respect the landowner and the landowners property.
I pledge to treat every firearm as if it was loaded.
I pledge to point every firearm in a safe direction.
I pledge to BE SURE OF MY TARGET BEFORE I SHOOT.
I pledge to ask permission before hunting.
I pledge to obey all fish and wildlife laws.
I pledge to observe the rules of fair chase.

It looks like to me that he broke two of the pledges. He did not have his firearm in a safe direction and he was not sure of his target before he shot, or was he?
We should tar and feather him!!!

eightball · 10-03-2002, 09:35 PM

:depressed: It's really sad that someone makes that kind of mistake and kills another person. The shooter has to live with it. The family of the dead has to live with it. Major stupidity to shoot what you can't see clearly. The shooter should never be able to hunt again. The article said about 6:30 am. It's still pretty dark then, hunter orange may not have made a difference. I think hunter orange should be a choice. We already have too many things mandated to us by government. I think scopers could legally be shot and maybe should be. That is assault with a deadly weapon when you point a firearm at another person. When you are assaulted by a person with a deadly weapon it is legal to defend yourself with deadly force. You don't have to wait till he shoots you. I had a person scope me once. When I finished with him I can only hope he was a lot wiser, he also worked at the same place I did. It is sad that our sports expose us to danger but even very careful people get hurt. Most often by others who are not careful. Be careful fellow hunters and ifishers----Good luck

chummer · 10-04-2002, 12:34 PM

Question #1 on the ODFW hunter ed. test: What is the best way to avoid being in a hunting accident? Answer: Wear blaze orange!!!! I'm continually amazed during the rifle seasons at the number of hunters who choose to wear camo without so much as a hat thats orange- idiots, pure and simple! This event is negligence by both parties. My sympathy to the family of the deceased, as for the victims: tough s**t!

Cohodependent · 10-04-2002, 07:52 PM

I have to say that I feel that if you shoot and kill an other hunter you should be charged with murder! There is no excuse for this kind of incident. If the athorities were to start charging these dangerous fools and locking then away, more people would thing before they squeezed off that round.

An other of my pet peves are the guy who use their scope for binos. If you point your gun at me you might get shot. Who is to say what your intentions are. I was taught to never point your weapon at any one you did not want to shoot. I live by that rule and use my binos to investigate that movement on the hill side. Not my rifle...

Any way, my $.02

Miss B Haven · 10-04-2002, 08:06 PM

:depressed: :depressed: :depressed: :depressed: :depressed:

At least I can dream that this was a totally different situation from the folks who killed 8 plus elks on purpose and left most of them to rot. [img]graemlins/berry.gif[/img]

At least I can dream that this was stupidity and not murder. :depressed:

sliverslinger · 10-06-2002, 08:31 PM

Dont rifle hunters see their animal before they shoot? Brush shots should be classified as murder. I am a bow hunter, and we have to see our animals before we shoot. You do not hear of many accidents of people getting shot by another hunter during our season.
I wonder if that guy ever went thru a hunters saftey course