Willful &
Accidental Killings with Bows and Arrows
While it is true that accidents with bows
and arrows are less common than other forms of hunting, they do happen -- see below.
Most go unreported, as people remove errant arrows from
their yards, homes, garages, etc., without notifying the
authorities. There are also deliberate killings with
bows and arrows. It's the prosecutions of these crimes
that are rare.
In New Jersey, children as young as 10
can obtain a free hunting license, courtesy of
taxpayers, upon completion of a hunter safety course.
According to the International Hunter Education
Association, there were 445 hunting accidents in 2004.
At least 103 accidents involved children. Of those,
at least 20 were fatal.
The Families Afield** lobby claims
that hunting is far safer than other recreational
activities, even cheerleading. Clearly,
injuries sustained while hunting can be far more severe.
Cheerleading is seldom fatal; nor does it involve
razor-tipped projectiles designed to inflict maximum
damage and gaping wounds. One remarkable fact gleaned
from the list of hunting accidents is the large
number of incidents in which parents killed their
children or children killed a parent or other relative.
Unlike the sprained ankles and twisted knees that come
from cheerleading, these are devastating traumas that
ruin the lives of the survivors and destroy families.
According to a
mother opposed to
10-year olds being allowed to hunt in New
Jersey: "When my sons were 10, they could not even aim
into the toilet, so why would anyone put a firearm or
other dangerous weapon in their hands at that age?"
[It
is a fact.] Young children lack the mental and emotional
maturity to take part in an activity that requires
split-second life and death decisions—the same reasons
why most states require a person to be 17 years-of-age
to drive and 21 years-of-age to drink.
**Families
Afield is a lobbying group dedicated to lowering the
minimum hunting age across the country and exempting
children from hunter safety courses. It describes age
minimums and required safety courses as "barriers" to
children wishing to hunt.
A Michigan cat was stable and a $1,000 reward was posted for
information leading to whoever shot it with a crossbow
arrow, authorities said Tuesday.
The cat was found Monday morning cowering under the deck of
a home in Kalamo Township, near Lansing, the Eaton County
Sheriff's Department said. It had been shot with a crossbow,
and the arrow — known as a bolt, which had a tip for target
shooting — was stuck in its midsection.
The Animal Protection League of New Jersey received a call
from a Manalapan resident abouta
deer with an arrow in her. APLNJ staff member, Janine Motta
went to the location and saw the deer, who, incredibly,
appeared to be in good health despite the arrow in her
face. It is affecting her ability to eat normally
though and residents have given her raised platforms with
food.
UPDATE: SHARK activist Stuart Chaifetz and APLNJ kept the
pressure up, but Grace was pregnant, which delayed the arrow
removal. On September 1, 2015, the NJ-DFW removed the part
of the arrow that was protruding. A veterinarian
recommended leaving the arrowhead in place since the wound
had healed around it. See full press release
here.
New Jersey hunter indicted for killing pet dog with
bow and arrow in front of owner
KINGSTON -- A New Jersey hunter was indicted Thursday for
killing a pet dog with a bow and arrow while the owner
looked on, the Ulster County District Attorney's Office
says.
David Moors, 39, of Beachwood was indicted by an Ulster
County grand jury for killing the dog on Oct. 27 last year,
while hunting off 207 Weed Road in Pine Bush, his sister's
property.
Moors is charged with aggravated cruelty to animals, a
felony, and hunting deer with bait, a violation. Moors was
hunting deer when he shot and killed the dog in front of the
dog's owner, the district attorney's office says.
Jade the cat shot with arrow in Howell, SPCA
searching for suspect (Nov. 21, 2013 5:04 PM)
HOWELL — A tabby cat
named Jade was found shot with an arrow this weekend but
survived after emergency surgery, and animal cruelty
investigators are asking for the public’s help to identify
the attacker.
“It is incredible
that the cat lived,” said Victor “Buddy” Amato, chief humane
law enforcement officer for the Monmouth County Society for
the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. “The Lakewood animal
hospital did an outrageous job of saving that cat.”
Amato said the cat, which was
found Saturday by a resident who lives at Winding Brook
Mobile Home Park, had been micro-chipped in October.
Amato said he didn’t want to
release too many details about the case because it is still
under investigation.
Amato said the cat was taken to
the animal hospital in Lakewood where it underwent emergency
surgery to remove the arrow. He said the arrow entered the
side of the feline and just missed hitting vital organs.
Amato asks anyone with informaion
to contact him at 732-312-7153.
ROCKAWAY TOWNSHIP — On Saturday afternoon,
representatives from Fish and Wildlife watched and waited in Susan
Darrah's backyard in the township for the third day in a row, to see if
the deer with an arrow embedded in its face would return to eat.
The waiting paid off.
At approximately 6:30 p.m., Darrah said the deer,
along with four or five other deer, came to her backyard to eat the
corn, apples and pears left out for the animals.
A representative from Fish and Wildlife, who arrived
at the home at approximately 3 p.m., was ready and shot a tranquilizer
dart, hitting the deer, as Darrah watched from her window.
Larry Ragonese, spokesman for the Department of
Environmental Protection, said biologists were able to tranquilize the
5-month old male deer and remove an arrow that had pierced completely
through the
animal’s head. He said after the deer was anesthetized, the biologists
were able to unscrew the arrow head from the shaft and pull it out.
Darrah went outside as two technicians began treating
the deer. She said they applied cream, dressed the wound and checked the
condition of the animal.
The biologists who did the procedure say the
prognosis for survival is excellent. The arrow had entered the left side
of the deer’s head, traveled through the nasal cavity and exited out the
right side without any
damage to any major arteries or organs, according to Ragonese.
Upon examination, the biologists noted the puncture
wounds were not infected and were already starting to heal, Ragonese
said. Preventative antibiotics were applied and the wounds were expected
to heal
naturally with licking from the mother doe.
Darrah said she and the DEP representatives stayed
with the deer as the effects of the tranquilizer wore off and watched as
the animal got up on wobbly legs, walked on its own to the pasture in
the back of her
yard and laid down. She said the animal was resting comfortably Saturday
night.
"I'm so excited! I'm so happy,"
she exclaimed. According to the representative from Fish and Wildlife,
the animal will be "just fine,” Darrah reported.
Deer returns to Rockaway Twp. backyard after arrow removed
(November 15, 2013)
Five days after a hunter's arrow was removed from the
face of a young 5-month-old male deer, the animal was spotted again in
the Rockaway Twp. NJ backyard of Susan Darrah, the woman who helped him.
She reported the wounds were healing. VIDEO BY EVA ABREU 11/14/13
Recent discussions about the dangers of bow hunting:
In Chapel Hill, North
Carolina, the town staff members rejected a proposed bow
hunt for deer: "If an arrow strikes
a tree and ricochets, it is a projectile that could
cause death or serious injury," said police Lt. Kevin
Gunter.
Hershey was discovered on Nov. 6 in Valley City, about
15 miles from the home he had run away from 17 days
earlier. The 15-year-old German shepherd-Labrador
retriever mix had an arrow poked through both sides of
his chest. The local Society for the Prevention of
Cruelty to Animals says the arrow was probably in place
for at least two days. The arrow was removed at a
veterinary hospital in Akron.
23-year-old man arrested for shooting hunting arrow into
Brockport home
Posted at: 12/15/2010 4:23 PM
Brockport
Police have arrested a 23-year-old man for shooting a
hunting arrow into a house in the village of Brockport.
The arrow just missed Erica Russell's daughter. Over the
weekend when News 10NBC first reported the story,
Russell said she saw the man who fired it but he ran
off.
Today, police
arrested Philip Niccloy of LeRoy for reckless
endangerment and criminal mischief. They didn't say how
he was caught, but they say he was not targeting the
family. Niccloy was ticketed and released. He is
due in Sweden Town Court On December 27.
Raptor Trust worker
Kristi Ward releases a Canada goose into a stream in
Millington, N.J. The goose was released back into the
wild April 19 after rehabilitation from an arrow wound.
(Mel Evans / AP)
Minn.
man found dead in apparent hunting accident
Associated Press
AUSTIN, Minn. - Minnesota deputies say an Austin man has
died in an apparent hunting accident.
KIMT-TV in Mason City, Iowa, says authorities found the
body of 44-year-old Bernard Olson on Thursday evening.
Fillmore County deputies were investigating a report of
a missing person when they found Olson's parked vehicle.
They followed tracks in the snow to his body. An initial
investigation suggests Olson might have fallen on an
arrow, injuring himself too severely to make it back to
his vehicle. Fillmore County is in the southeast corner
of the state.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
November
11, 2009
Pet dog
shot by bowhunter on Geauga park land
By John Horton, The Plain Dealer
Montville Township -- An archer permitted to hunt deer
on Geauga Park District property killed a dog being
exercised in Observatory Park on Tuesday afternoon.
The hunter -- whose name has not been released by park
officials -- launched an arrow into the side of a
9-year-old black Labrador retriever named Steel,
according to the dog's owner. The trained bird dog lived
with Robert Phillips at a Clay Street home adjacent to
the 1,200-acre park in eastern Geauga County.
Phillips, 62, said he was outside working with Steel
when the hunter shot the dog at close range. He said he
heard Steel "scream" from about 100 yards away. The dog
had been running back and forth across the park
district's property line.
The hunter told rangers that he shot Steel after the dog
moved toward him in "an aggressive manner," park
spokeswoman Cindy Ford said.
Phillips said that account is believable only if the
hunter "has arrows that go around in circles" given the
location of the dog's wound.
Observatory Park is one of six properties that the park
district opened to hunters this season as part of a
wildlife management plan. This is the fourth year with
allowed hunting on county parkland, and the third
involving deer. Last year, hunters harvested 150 deer
from park properties; 36 came from the woods of
Observatory Park.
The park district selects licensed hunters by lottery
and requires them to pass a proficiency test and attend
a safety meeting, Ford said. Hunters are required to
stay at least 200 feet away from roads and neighboring
properties.
Ford said that the incident took place "well within park
boundaries," but Phillips described the location as "8
inches" onto park property.
The hunter phoned park rangers to report what he did,
while Phillips dialed 9-1-1 and told dispatchers that
"someone just shot my dog with a bow and arrow and
killed it." The shooting remains under review by
rangers. Deer hunting has been suspended at Observatory
Park while the investigation takes place.
Other Geauga parkland open for hunting at some point
during the state's bow, shotgun or muzzleloader seasons
includes the Ellerin Property and Frohring Meadows in
Bainbridge Township; the Rookery and Bass Lake Preserve
in Munson Township; and Burton Wetlands Nature Preserve
in Burton and Newbury townships.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
October, 2009
Fairfield Man Dies in Hunting Accident
By Andy Waterman
WAYNE COUNTY- Illinois State Police are investigating
the death of a Fairfield man killed in a hunting
accident Thursday night. It was around 6:45 on Thursday
evening when 20 yr. Old Aaron Long and his 16 yr. Old
friend were hunting turkeys here down this path at Sam
Dale Lake in rural Wayne County, but just minutes later,
the 16 year old friend made a fatal mistake.
Wayne County Sheriff Jim Hinkle says, "He believed he
was shooting at a turkey, and after shooting he quickly
realized that he had shot his friend." Hinkle says the
20 year old didn't live long after the shot.
The arrow pierced Long in the left side of his back near
his heart. Shortly after the accident his friend found a
group of hunters and they called 9-1-1.
The sheriff says because it was an accident- It's
unlikely the young man will be charged, "It's just an
extreme tragedy and this young man and the families of
everybody involved is something they got to live with
for the rest of their lives."
Sheriff Hinkle adds that a hunting accident like this
hasn't occurred in Wayne County in several years, but he
recommends that no matter how old you are or how long
you've been hunting, that you should take a hunters
safety course to prevent accidents like this from
happening.
Leavenworth Times
Leavenworth County, Kan. - An Independence, Mo., man had
to go the hospital to have an arrow removed from his leg
following a hunting accident Tuesday in Leavenworth
County, according to a report from the sheriff’s office.
The arrow
completely pierced through the upper right thigh of
Daniel G. Jennings, 33.
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March 5, 2009 Md. teen fined for firing arrow into home Associated Press
ROCKVILLE, Md. — Maryland Natural Resources Police say a
Germantown teen has pleaded guilty to a hunting
violation after a Montgomery County man found a hunting
arrow in his sofa.
The arrow was discovered at the home on Spring Meadows
Drive in Germantown in September and investigators
determined that it had flown through a window.
Police say 18-year-old Paul Howell Jr. was charged in
January and pleaded guilty last week in Montgomery
County District Court to violating a county weapons
ordinance.
Howell was fined $100 and placed on three years
probation. He was also ordered to pay $620 restitution
to the homeowner and $300 to the Wildlife Conservation
Enforcement Fund.
Howell's hunting privileges are suspended until July
2010.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted: 1:44 PM Nov 18, 2008
Student Killed in Bow & Arrow Accident
Reporter: Phil Weber
PORTSMOUTH, Ohio (WSAZ) -- A student at Portsmouth High
School has died in an accident involving a bow and
arrow.
According to Portsmouth Police, 17-year-old Storm
Bratchett was killed after he was hit with an arrow from
a hunting bow at his friend's house Tuesday morning.
Investigators tell WSAZ.com that Bratchett's friend was
showing him his new bow and loaded it with a practice
arrow. During this time, police say the bow somehow went
off, and the arrow hit Bratchett in the chest.
Bratchett's friend then pulled the arrow out and
notified a relative, who drove Bratchett to the
hospital, according to police.
Bratchett died during surgery at Southern Ohio Medical
Center.
Family and friends are currently gathering at Christ
Community Church in Portsmouth.
Police are still investigating the incident.
[ Copyright 2009 – WSAZ.com. All Rights Reserved. ]
October 13, 2007
Brian and Tyler Flynn were bow hunting near their camp
in Huntington during the evening of Saturday October
13th, 2007. Brian Flynn was hunting out of a ground
blind when he heard a noise behind him so he exited the
blind and saw what he thought was a bear. Brian Flynn
shot an arrow at the bear which turned out to be Tyler
Flynn sitting on a rock a short distance away from him.
At the time of this incident Tyler Flynn was wearing a
black fleece jacket.
The arrow struck Tyler Flynn in the upper back on his
left side. The arrow lodged in his shoulder blade. Brian
Flynn brought Tyler Flynn to the General Store in
Huntington where he called 911 and met with rescue
personnel. Tyler Flynn was transported to Fletcher Allen
in Burlington where the arrow was surgically removed
without incident. Tyler Flynn was expected to be
released from the hospital on Tuesday October 16th,
2007.
A joint investigation was conducted between Vermont
State Police and Vermont State Game Wardens. The
investigation is continuing and at this time appears to
be accidental. This incident will be sent for review by
the Chittenden County State's Attorney when completed.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bow-Hunting Accident Kills Man Near Lake of the
Ozarks
KYTV - Springfield, MO,USA - 26 Sep 2004
CAMDENTON, Mo. -- A man from Independence died in a
bow-hunting accident in Camden County on Saturday.
The Camden County Sheriff's Department says 52-year-old
Ammon Cerda died near Laurie about 7 p.m.
The sheriff's department and the Missouri Department of
Conservation are still investigating the accident and
haven't released other details about it.
Boy
Impaled By Arrow While Hunting With Father
Florida Boy Impaled In The Neck By Arrow, But Survives
POSTED: 4:57 pm EDT July 29, 2004
WEST MELBOURNE, Fla. -- A 7-year-old boy fell on an
arrow and was impaled in the neck, narrowly missing his
jugular vein, officials said.
The father of the boy, whose name was not released,
drove him 30 miles to a fire station for help. The boy
was hospitalized in stable condition after Thursday's
accident and was expected to survive, the Osceola County
Sheriff's Office said.
The boy fell while holding the arrow and playing in his
backyard in rural Central Florida, his father told
paramedics.
After piercing his neck near the jugular vein, the arrow
nearly passed all the way through to the boy's spine,
said Lt. Dave Hover of the Brevard County Fire Rescue's
Station where the boy went for emergency treatment.
Firefighters cut about 6 inches off the arrow so he
could be flown to an Orlando hospital.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Boy, 17, Charged With Manslaughter In Hunting Bow
Death
POSTED: 10:35 p.m. EST November 17, 2003
ALBION, N.Y. -- A 17-year-old boy was charged Monday
with manslaughter in the death of a 16-year-old friend
who was shot in the head with an arrow.
The Orleans County Sheriff's Office on Monday charged
Jeremy D. Hucknall of Barre with one count of
second-degree manslaughter in the Nov. 9 death of
Christopher McClary of Albion, 30 miles west of
Rochester.
McClary, Hucknall and two other friends were shooting
arrows from a hunting bow in a field. McClary ducked
behind a junked car but then stood up just as Hucknall
fired an arrow toward the car, police said.
The arrow hit McClary, who was rushed to a nearby
hospital and then airlifted to Buffalo. He was
pronounced dead about seven hours later.
Hucknall appeared in Barre Town Court Monday afternoon
and was released without bail to the custody of his
father. He is scheduled to appear in court again on Nov.
20.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
October 28, 2003
Bow hunting accident claims life of Mountain City man
By Lesley Jenkins
star staff
ljenkins@starhq.com
A bow hunting accident claimed the life of a Mountain
City man Saturday evening. Michael Todd Stout, 43, 920
A. Davis Lane, died from massive blood loss after an
arrow accidentally pierced the calf area of his leg,
according to the Johnson County Sheriff's Department.
JCSD Deputy Johnny Roberts responded to Davis Lane after
a neighbor called reporting the accident at
approximately 5:30 p.m. Roberts found Stout in the front
seat of his vehicle not far from his home.
"It is determined that the victim was walking with (the)
bow in his left hand with (the) arrow in (the) bow and
had apparently tripped, jabbing the arrow into his left
leg," Roberts' report states. Roberts determined Stout
removed the arrow from his leg before walking nearly one
mile down the mountain to his vehicle, where he
constructed a tourniquet for the wound then drove
approximately a half mile before passing out from blood
loss. Because Stout was driving a manual vehicle, his
car came to a stop, according to the police report.
Roberts stated Stout possibly remained in his vehicle
between one to four hours before a neighbor found him.
He was transported to the Johnson County Health Center
where he died due to massive blood loss, according to
Johnson County Coroner Willie Debord.
Foul play is not suspected in the case.
Stout is survived by his wife, Lisa Henson Stout, and
two daughters, Jessica and Rebekah.
Boy, 10, killed by crossbow called 'good-hearted' By Laura Barnhardt
Sun Staff
Originally published October 28, 2003
As state officials continued their investigation
yesterday into the death of a Perry Hall fifth-grader
killed by a crossbow in a weekend hunting accident,
friends and neighbors remembered the boy's love of
animals and the outdoors.
"It's awful. I'm going to miss seeing him and his little
smile," said Susan Collins, a neighbor on Joppa Pond
Road whose 6-year-old and 4-year-old sons played with
Tyler Stephen Mattison. "He liked playing video games.
He was good with the little kids -- giving them
piggyback rides. He was kind and good-hearted."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
EMTs aid a child with arrow in eye - Wednesday,
October 22, 2003 WILMINGTON- A 9-year old Andover boy was rushed to
Massachusetts General Hospital late last week after
being shot in the eye with an arrow.
Deputy Police Chief Bob Spencer said Wilmington
dispatchers received a 911 transfer call on Saturday
from Massachusetts State Police. Mark Coneeny, the boy's
father, told dispatchers his son had an arrow sticking
out of his eye and he was rushing him to a Boston
hospital.
Dispatchers told the father to pull into the Interstate
93 south breakdown lane and wait for an ambulance.
Officer John Tully responded with the ambulance to I-93
and met the Coneeny's black Lexus at the Route 129 exit.
There he spoke with Bret Coneeny who told him a friend
accidentally shot him with an arrow.
"I do not know what type of arrow it was," Spencer said.
However, he is concerned by the accident. While the
accident happened in Andover, there are no rules or
regulations governing who can buy archery equipment.
Wilmington is no longer the rural community it once was
and Spencer said he wonders how careful a child will be
with a bow and arrow. Wilmington does not allow hunting
in any form within the town boundaries, but it does not
mean people do not hunt here, he said.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bowhunter shoots teen who scared deer
Associated Press - Oct. 29, 2002
MOUNT VERNON, Ill. - A New Athens man was hunting deer
with a bow and arrow when he says he accidentally shot a
teenager in the chest who had scared away his prey,
according to authorities.
Steven Kemp, 17, of Dix, was upgraded from critical to
stable condition Tuesday at Good Samaritan Hospital in
this southern Illinois city, hospital spokeswoman Kathy
Atchison said.
Kemp was riding his recreational, all-terrain vehicle
with friends near North Miller Lake Saturday afternoon
when Donald Foutch Jr., who was hunting deer in the
area, complained and tried to get the group to stop,
according to police reports and court papers.
Police say Foutch, 41, complained the teens had scared
away a deer he had been watching from his hunting stand.
An argument ensued, and Foutch partially drew back his
quick-release bow as if he were going to shoot his arrow
at Kemp, witnesses said.
Foutch told police he then slipped, "and the bow just
went off," according to court papers. He was standing
about three feet away from the teenager
at the time.
The arrow pierced Kemp's lung, narrowly missed his heart
and extended through the back of his shoulder, witnesses
said. Doctors later said they used more than 20 units of
blood treating the teen.
Foutch, who administered first aid to Kemp, was charged
with aggravated battery and possession of drug
equipment. Police said they found a marijuana pipe with
what appeared to be residue of the drug in his car
nearby.
Foutch remained at Jefferson County Jail Tuesday on
$60,000 bond. His arraignment was scheduled for Nov. 21.
Father accidentally shoots son with arrow while deer
hunting. Associated Press
October 29, 2000
NORTH WEBSTER, Ind. -- A Kosciusko County man was killed
Sunday on a hunting trip when his father mistook him for
a deer and shot him with an arrow. Frederick C. Searfoss,
28, of Syracuse was pronounced dead early Sunday morning
at the scene of the accident in an area near North
Webster, about 30 miles northwest of Fort Wayne.
The Indiana Department of Natural Resources reported
that Searfoss was bow hunting with his father, Jerry
Searfoss, and a friend, Daryl Gans. While Frederick
Searfoss was on his way to a tree stand he was mistaken
for a deer by his father, who later told conservation
officers he thought the sound his son was making was a
deer walking.
Jerry Searfoss fired his bow and said he thought he saw
a buck take the arrow, but then Frederick Searfoss
called out to the other hunters that he had been hit.
Jerry
Searfoss and Gans located Frederick Searfoss, and while
one of the men attempted to control the bleeding, the
other hunter sought help.
Emergency crews dispatched a Lifeline helicopter, but
Searfoss died before he could be transported. DNR
officials said the incident is considered an accidental
shooting and is no longer under investigation.
Hunters are not required to wear orange during bow
hunting season.