Cheney off the hook; official?

The sheriff said he had never known the people who detailed the incident to lie so there was no need to investigate to see if there was any wrong doing.

I've known of several people getting killed in hunting accidents.

No investigation on most of them.

Bullshit.

I'm sure you are well acquainted with bullshit, national repository and all, but tis true. People get killed around here every hunting season. Keeps the population down.

It happens.

You may not be well versed in outdoor activities such as hunting, perhaps.

You are completely full of ****. I am well aware of police investigations. Hunting accidents are not deemed as such without investigation. You must think people are really stupid to be fooled by your nonsense.
---------------------------------------------------
Trial raises question: Hunting accident or reckless homicide?

By Matt Bean
Court TV
Monday, March 24, 2003 Posted: 5:28 PM EST (2228 GMT)

Michael Berseth


(Court TV) -- In the final, frenzied days of the 2002 Wisconsin deer season, hunter Michael Berseth leveled his muzzle-loading rifle at what he thought was the white fleck of a deer's tail moving through the brush.

He pulled the trigger, and hit his mark. But although Berseth's aim was true, his target was not: Berseth's "deer" tail was actually a white scarf worn by his neighbor, Deborah Prasnicki.

Prasnicki, 47, was out for a walk with her two dogs when Berseth's bullet struck her in the head, killing her. After a lengthy investigation, the hunter will have to answer for her death in a trial beginning Tuesday.

Prosecutors say Berseth, 44, an experienced hunter who had hunted the area before and lived just a half mile away, should have known better. He is charged with second-degree reckless homicide, and could spend a maximum of 15 years in prison if convicted.

The .50 caliber muzzle-loading rifle Berseth wielded on December 1, 2001, had its heyday more than 100 years ago. But Berseth and his two hunting buddies were taking advantage of an exclusive hunting session that Wisconsin and many other states offer to hunters who use so-called "frontloaders."

Muzzle-loaders are akin to Civil War-era rifles. Instead of loading a self-contained bullet with the ignition, charge, and bullet all in one, muzzle-loading guns require the hunter to load the bullet down the barrel of the gun, and then ignite the propulsive charge by lighting a collection of black powder connected to the side of the gun.

Berseth had been using his muzzle-loader for about three years the day he went hunting with his two friends for deer. According to a criminal complaint, the three men headed out around 2 p.m., and scouted the area by walking down a logging road running through the brush.

After a day spent wrapping Christmas presents, Prasnicki headed with her two dogs, Andy and Poochie, for a walk. The teacher's aide at a local high school was on the same path Berseth had reportedly used to scout terrain when the hunter's bullet hit her head. It was about 4:44 p.m.

Hunting deaths involving muzzle-loading rifles are rare. According to a report by the International Hunter Education Association, only seven people died in the U.S. in 2000 as a result of muzzle-loaded bullets, and five of the deaths were self-inflicted.

But a total of 91 people died and 835 more were injured during U.S. hunting accidents in 2000, casualties some groups see as avoidable.

Rex Stuart, president of the Non-Hunter's Rights Coalition, is worried that the buffer zone between hunting zones and residential and nature preserve areas are being blurred by encroaching hunters.

"If there's a deer there, they really don't think what's behind the deer," said Stuart. "It's like a free-for-all, really."

John Robbins, a spokesperson with the National Rifle Association, declined to comment on the specifics of Berseth's case, but emphasized the organization's cardinal rules of hunting, including the need to make certain the target is actually what it appears to be.

"Animals aren't the only ones who suffer when hunters shoot first and ask questions later," said Stephanie Boyles, a spokesperson for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), which is following the case.

Rules and guidelines notwithstanding, Prasnicki's death was not the first time a bystander has been caught by a bullet. In November 2002, a 16-year-old girl was shot in the chest -- the bullet narrowly missed her heart -- while walking near the Appalachian Trail in Gainesville, Georgia.

An Ontonagon, Michigan, woman was walking her dogs through a wooded area frequented by hunters when she was fatally shot in 1992.

And in 1988, a Bangor, Maine, woman, Karen Wood, was bringing the laundry in from her yard when she was shot and killed. The hunter, Donald Rogerson, said he mistook her white mittens for the tail of a deer. Rogerson was acquitted of manslaughter in 1990, but the public debate spurred Maine to pass a "target identification" law in 1991 to hold hunters accountable for itchy trigger fingers.

Prosecutor Rachael Anderson argued in preliminary hearings that Berseth, who lived a half mile away from the site of the shooting and had hunted the area before, knew he was shooting toward a road and should have been more careful. Anderson did not return calls to comment on the case.

According to Wisconsin hunting accident statistics, Prasnicki's death came during one of the bloodiest hunting seasons in recent history.

Stuart, the Non-Hunter Coalition president, understands that many may hunt for sport, or for food. But it is the lack of responsibility, he says, that makes the sport deadly.

"It's really sad," said Hunter. "It used to be they were just happy walking in the woods. Now they'll just shoot at anything that comes along."

Consider some of the accidents reported, by law, to the Wisconsin department of natural resources:

• "Victim was walking along field edge still hunting turkeys," reads one report. "Shooter thought victim was "struting" [sic] and also thought he saw some red. Shooter shot victim at a distance of 142 feet."

• "Shooter saw what he thought was a gray squirrel and shot. Gray squirrel was victim's hat. After victim was shot he then shoots himself in the foot."

• "Victim placed a .20 gauge shell in a .12 gauge firearm. Then discharged a .12 gauge behind the .20 and barrel blew up."

Berseth's attorney, Richard L. Wachowski, did not return phone calls.

The jury that will decide Berseth's fate will have the option of finding him guilty of the lesser included charge of negligent homicide.

cnn.com

Oops. Direct TOS violation. Imagine that!

Law enforcement agencies are investigating if the man suspected of killing six deer hunters and injuring two others was involved in the unsolved slaying of a deer hunter three years ago in a nearby Wisconsin county, a detective said Tuesday.

Northwoods Shootings

2001 Shooting


Jim Southworth was found shot to death on Nov. 23, 2001, as he hunted on family land 10 miles east of Neillsville in Clark County.



Map: Where it Happened


Archive Coverage

1/26/03: Death of hunter remains a mystery


Where to Call

There is a $50,000 reward for information in the Nov. 23, 2001, killing of Jim Southworth. Anyone with information should call (800) 743-2420.

Related Coverage

Shooting: Suspect says other hunters fired first
Homicides: Sunday's shooting has similarities to a 2001 killing 80 miles away
Minnesota: Hmong leaders decry shooting
Haugen: Grievers comfort each other at prayer service
Editorial: Searching for answers
Video: TMJ4 reports


Recent Coverage

11/21/04: 5 killed, 3 hurt in hunting rampage
11/22/04: 6th victim dies from Sunday's shooting
11/22/04: Alleged shooter was avid hunter
11/22/04: Victims gathered at deer camp every year


Victims Fund

A fund has been set up for the families of the victims and survivors of the shooting. Donations may be sent to:
Rice Lake Hunters Survivors and Victims Fund
Dairy State Bank
16 S. Main St.
Rice Lake, WI 54868

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Clark County Sheriff's Department Detective Kerry Kirn said he has exchanged frequent calls with investigators in Sawyer County since Monday morning.

"I can tell you we have been in contact with authorities from Sawyer County to address that," Kirn said. "It is premature to speculate if there is a connection."

On Nov. 23, 2001, Jim Southworth was shot to death as he hunted on family land 10 miles east of Neillsville in one of the only other homicides ever to be linked to Wisconsin's deer hunting season.

Southworth was shot twice in the back and both bullets exited his chest, an autopsy found.

Witnesses reported a pickup truck with three men inside on a road near where Southworth's body was found, about 80 miles south of Sunday's shooting.

The three men were described as Asian from 5-foot-4-inches to 6-feet. They were driving a silver or gray Nissan or Chevrolet pickup truck, possibly a late 1980s model with a light-colored fiberglass topper.

Chai Soua Vang, 36, of St. Paul, Minn., who is suspected of shooting eight hunters Sunday, is 5-foot-4-inches, according to a court document. Vang has owned a 1987 Nissan pickup, according to an online search service. According to court records, Vang allegedly shot several of Sunday's victims in the back.

The Sawyer County rampage was allegedly sparked by a dispute over Vang using a deer stand on private property. One of the theories Clark County authorities have been pursuing is that Southworth was shot after confronting a trespasser.

Officials said that Vang was hunting with two other people on Sunday, before he became lost and wandered onto the private property. Police are looking for those other people.

Vang did have an out-of-state license to hunt in Wisconsin in 2001, said Mike Bartz, a Department of Natural Resources warden manager. He also had a license in 2000, 2002 and this year, he said.

Kirn called the three people being sought in Southworth's murder "persons of interest."

"To our knowledge, those are the only three people who we haven't identified who were in that area that day," Kirn said.

Kirn said he could not comment on whether Vang has been or will be questioned in the Southworth case. Investigators from the state Department of Justice are investigating both cases, he said.

"They need to do their investigation and when all facts come out, and they will relay that to me, and we'll make the comparison," Kirn said.

The Sawyer County Sheriff's Department, the first to respond to Sunday's shooting, referred questions to the Department of Justice. A spokesman there declined to comment on whether a connection was being investigated between the two cases.

Told of the two cases, a retired FBI agent said his experience tells him that they could very well be related.

"The odds of the two being unrelated are astronomical, I would say," said Bob Dwyer, who now works as a private investigator in Florida.

But an absence of physical evidence in the 2001 case could make it difficult to prove such a connection, Dwyer said. The best way to tie two crimes together is to match weapons or bullets, he said.

Kirn declined to comment on what kind of gun was used to kill Southworth or if they recovered bullets in the woods where he was shot. A warden said last year that investigators were looking for casings.

The hunting rifle Southworth was carrying - a Ruger model 77 bolt action .03-06-caliber - was missing

I'd imagine it would be necessary to follow up and do *some* investigation into "accidental" killings if there was a suggestion the shooter was drunk or otherwise reckless?

It must be.

Every accidental death in the United States is investigated. When someone claims otherwise, he or she is not telling the truth, comonly referred to as being full of ****.

....and when it is preceded by "You are" it is against TOS.

You should know by now, as many times as you've done it.

The King of the Locked Thread lecturing us on A2K TOS. Priceless.

Don't be a hater, dude.

First off, it's not manslaughter, because no one is dead, at least not yet, barring more pellets migrating. So you can't charge Cheney with that.

However Cheney is ultimately at fault. He had the gun. He pulled the trigger. He apparently violated the principle that you don't take low-lying shots. He didn't make sure no-one was in front of him.

It seems at the very least reckless endangerment, which is a crime in some states, I believe.

It seems absurd that in ANY automobile accident fault is assigned if there is any property damage or bodily damage. And damages are assessed and have to be paid, claims can be made against the party more at fault, and the state can act against the one(s) at fault; but someone gets filled full of buckshot (and I love that estimate "somewhere between six and two hundred pellets" hit Whittington--boy, that really narrows it down), and it gets written off as a "hunting accident", no investigation, no penalty. Try that next time you sieswipe someone's car (let alone some person you didn't see crossing behind you) in a parking lot.

I am not a hater, in fact the antithesis of one, and it's Roxie, Roxxanne or miss, dude.

Of course, if you or I shoot someone, there will be a thorough investigation, but if one is the VP and above the law, it is a different story.

http://apnews.myway.com/article/20060216/D8FQDTIOQ.html

"SARITA, Texas (AP) - The sheriff's department closed its investigation Thursday into Dick Cheney's accidental shooting of a hunting partner and said no charges will be filed.

The Kenedy County Sheriff's Department issued a report that largely supports the vice president's account of the weekend accident that wounded 78-year-old lawyer Harry Whittington.

Whittington, interviewed in the hospital, assured investigators no one was drinking when the accident occurred and everyone was wearing bright orange safety gear, according to the report.

Sheriff's dispatcher Diana Mata, speaking for the department, said the case is closed and no charges will be filed. She said Sheriff Ramon Salinas would have no comment on the report."

Investigated...case closed.

Truth is what one makes of it. My truth and your truth can be completely different. The fact is that if I (or you) believe something to be true, then for me (or you) it is the truth.

Re: Cheney off the hook; official?


... And I thought this only happens in INDIA.

or Harper, twinpeaksnikki, bluegirl, bluesguy, bluesnoclues, and about five others, dude. Hard to keep up, man.