Looked like a squirrel???

[Doc]

And so I heard on the news about the hunter that was mistaken for a squirrel and killed by a family friend. He actually said that he thought the guy was a squirrel. I would have guessed that any squirrel hunting accident would definitely have to be self-inflicted, but I guess I would be wrong. So now I am re-thinking the possible need for blaze orange while bowhunting.

[jjb4900]

maybe he was playing with his nuts? sorry, not funny.........

[pewlodar]

Guy who did the "hunting", er I mean shooting is a convicted felon. I would guess the story has just begun.

[fasteddie]

Guy who did the "hunting", er I mean shooting is a convicted felon. I would guess the story has just begun.

 

Lonsberry said on the radio that the shooter had a scoped rifle . How the hell do you look through a scope and think it's a squirrel ? Was it an accident ?

[ants]

Was the victim wearing one of those WWI  leather flying caps & goggles?? The older guys will get that one……….. But seriously…Sad & totally avoidable.

[Elmo]

That's one big giant squirrel.

[New York Hillbilly]

Well there you go ants, not only did the guy try to kill a squirrel but a famous one at that. No other than Rocky J. Squirrel himself. See how mean those moose get during the rut? Not sure if Mr. Winkle may be involved somehow, but the story does seem to have a load of bull in it. 

 

Anyone who draws down on and shoots another human in the field should go to jail. End of story, no excuses, it's stupidity and murder in my book!

[fisher2]

in 1972 my dad was squirrel hunting a ridge line for squirrel and he saw a gray blob bouncing up and down on the other ridge 75 yards away he pulled up his scope and noticed it looked odd still squirrly but was acting strange. as he watched it got lower and lower near end if ridge, and a police officer stepped out, in the 70's apparently their uniforms had gray hats, and he ripped the officer a new asshole about walking around in the woods on opening day of squirrel season on private land. moral of the story is if dad didnt listen to the dont shoot silhouetted targets rule of gun safety he would have killed the police officer as a real hunting accident. so yes these things can happen. 

[fasteddie]

Here is the article from today's paper ...................

 

Hunting fatality grim reminder

Squirrel hunter’s death in Rush brings safety talk to forefront

Victoria E. Freile and Leo Roth

Staff writers

Hunting safety in New York state has greatly increased in the last 50 years, with the in­cident rate per 100,000 hunters falling by more than 70 percent since the 1960s, according to the state Department of En­vironmental Conserva­tion.

Last year was the saf­est on record with a total of 19 hunting incidents and two fatalities. Of those, 14 were self-in­flicted.

A father and son, along with the father’s friend, were hunting in Rush on Tuesday evening when the son shot at what he be­lieved to be a squirrel, ac­cording to Monroe County sheriff’s deputies. The shot instead struck and killed his father’s friend, Vienchaleun Kettavong, 71, who died at the scene.

Jim Crittenden, a New York hunter safety in­structor and past presi­dent and current treasur­er of the Region 8 North Instructors Association, said no one kind of game

See HUNTING, Page 9A
 

Article Continued Below

See HUNTING on Page A09

Hunting

Continued from Page 3A

hunting is more dangerous than the other.

“I can’t say (squirrel hunting) is any more dangerous, it’s only dangerous if you’ve got people who aren’t being safe,” said Crittenden, of Henrietta. “Ninety-nine percent of all the incidents that happen every year are due to people who blatantly disregard the first four safety regulations that we put out to students.”

Those are: always point the muzzle of a gun in a safe direction; treat every firearm as if it were loaded; identify your target and what lies beyond; keep your finger off the trigger until ready to fire, Crittenden said.

“It’s those last two that really get people in trouble when they disregard them,” he said.

Tuesday’s hunting fatality occurred in a heavily wooded area, which is prime habitat for squirrels.

Typically, squirrel hunters use a shotgun loaded with shells that contain pellets or a .22caliber rifle, Crittenden said. Shooting at a squirrel sitting high on a tree branch or one that is near the ground on a log or stump requires a safetyconscious hunter to determine what’s beyond his target, he added.

“If you are using a .22 and shooting a squirrel in a tree, you have to make sure the backstop is the tree,” Crittenden said. “Because if the bullet keeps going and doesn’t hit the trunk, where is it ending up? It can go a mile and a half. If a squirrel is on a tree branch and you’re using a shotgun, those pellets come down fairly close, within 100 yards because the shot is at a high angle.”

Police did not disclose the type of gun used in Tuesday’s incident by Phetsouvahn Kounnavong, a convicted violent felon who spent more than two years in state prison.

Kounnavong was 24 when he was convicted of second-degree assault and attempted second-degree burglary in Wayne County in 2006 after he entered a home, stole personal items and assaulted a female resident, according to the state Department of Corrections and Community Supervision.

He was sentenced to 2 1 ⁄ years and five years postrelease supervision and spent nearly two years in prison before he was released in June 2008, said DOCCS spokeswoman Taylor Vogt. Kounnavong violated his parole in mid-2012 and spent three more months in prison before he was again released in September 2012.

Convicted violent felons are prohibited from possessing firearms under most federal and state laws. No charges have been filed in connection with the incident, said John Helfer of the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office. The incident is being investigated.

Kettavong is survived by his wife of nearly 50 years and six grown children, all born in Laos, and many other relatives. He served in the Lao Republic Army before he spent six years in a concentration camp, followed by two years in a Thai refugee camp with his family before moving to upstate New York in 1982.

His calling hours will be from 3 to 8 p.m. Saturday at the Kevin W. Dougherty Funeral Home in Livonia, Livingston County. Kettavong’s funeral service will begin at 11:30 a.m. Sunday at the funeral home.

[email protected] Twitter.com/vfreile [email protected] Twitter.com/leoroth

Includes reporting by staff writer Gary McLendon.

[biggamefish]

Fisher your father remembered gun safety Know your target and beyond.  He said it looked like a squirrel but was sure and didn't shoot.  Which is what you are suppose to do!! Period.  The guy who shot the other squirrel hunter didn't do this.  You always hear them shooters say I THOUGHT it was ........  When you are going to pull the trigger you don't think you know your target you know your target period.  

[fisher2]

well yeah my dad also thought it was a squirrel but 6th sense wise said it was odd

Fisher your father remembered gun safety Know your target and beyond.  He said it looked like a squirrel but was sure and didn't shoot.  Which is what you are suppose to do!! Period.  The guy who shot the other squirrel hunter didn't do this.  You always hear them shooters say I THOUGHT it was ........  When you are going to pull the trigger you don't think you know your target you know your target period.  

 

[mike rossi]

“Ninety-nine percent of all the incidents that happen every year are due to people who blatantly disregard the first four safety regulations that we put out to students.”

Those are: always point the muzzle of a gun in a safe direction; treat every firearm as if it were loaded; identify your target and what lies beyond; keep your finger off the trigger until ready to fire, Crittenden said.

“It’s those last two that really get people in trouble when they disregard them,” he said.

 

 They need to add to that "always know exactly where everyone you are hunting with is at all times.... And why no blaze orange while hunting squirrels?

 

Edited September 30, 2014 by mike rossi

[Doc]

I have seen more people wearing blaze orange in small-game season in recent years. I think they are the smart ones. In fact I am considering adding some blaze orange to my bowhunting clothing.

[Culvercreek hunt club]

Watch this and I bet the Father gave the kid the gun and will be charged. Given what just took place for the straw purchase trial I bet they go after this hard too.

[philoshop]

Personally, I would hate to see it become mandatory. Common sense beats regulation in this case. An entirely different argument there though.

I carry a blaze hankie in my pocket whenever I'm in full camo, or even just hiking with a camera. Wave it if you see or hear someone or pin it to the hat when you're in doubt about who might be around, (granted that's most of the time these days).  Orange won't directly bother the deer, but when every little bird in the area suddenly shuts up or disappears the deer will notice it. My senses go on full alert whenever a nearby crow or bluejay starts making a ruckus, because it's oftentimes a deer that gets 'em going.

[Elmo]

Squirrel hunting isn't the type you think people would shoot at simply in the direction of the noise since they are so small but I guess there are some unbelievable idiots out there. I stopped wearing orange in September squirrel hunts but I guess I'll have to start wearing them from now on.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Culvercreek hunt club]

I thought I heard a report it was a background issue.

[Curmudgeon]

This conversation reminds me a hunt some years ago. I was working around the edge of a beaver meadow. I had a doe tag so didn't need to look for horns. The oddest looking brown thing was out in the meadow. It's back was horizontal. It was clearly alive. It was the size of a deer. However, it looks odd. Turns out it was a trapper bent over, head down, checking his muskrat traps dressed in Carhart overalls during the southern zone deer season.