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Updated: 7:16 AM Nov 19, 2009
Hunting Death Sparks Outrage
Ferrum, Va. The Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries says a college student from Frederick County is dead after being shot by a hunter.
Posted: 6:56 PM Nov 18, 2009Reporter: Michael Hyland Email Address: mhyland@whsv.com |
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The Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries says a college student from Frederick County is dead after being shot by a hunter.
Investigators say the hunter shot at Jessica Goode and two of her classmates.
Goode died, one classmate was injured and the other escaped unharmed. All three attended Ferrum College.
A spokeswoman for the college says the students were collecting frogs for a biology class about a mile west of campus Tuesday afternoon.
Jason David Cloutier of Ferrum was arrested and charged with manslaughter, reckless handling of a firearm and trespassing.
Investigators say Cloutier claims he was shooting at deer.
Local hunters say there are a number of things Cloutier could have done to avoid the student's death.
Wayne Runion runs a hunting store in Harrisonburg. He's been learning the ins and outs of hunting since he was a young child.
"I have trouble someone not being able to tell what a deer looks like over a human. I think it's uncalled for," says Runion.
Rob Ham is one of the officers who enforces Virginia's hunting laws.
"That type of incident is very rare," says Ham.
According to the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, most of the hunting deaths last year were self-inflicted.
Ham spends a lot of time at places like Little North Mountain.
"I would say 95 to 98 percent of the hunting population strive to be safe and abide by the rules and regulations," says Ham.
Hunters are expected to wear blaze orange hats like the one Ham wears.
"If they're out here wearing camouflage, they do blend in. Obviously, we'll look around for that. And, if we find them, we do issue a summons for it," says Ham.
Ham says one basic thing hunters are taught is to know what they are shooting at and what's behind it.
"Identifying your target, and not just seeing something move in the woods. You need to identify it. If you're hunting deer, you need to identify that as a deer," says Ham.
Ham recommends people who aren't hunting wear the bright orange color too.
Runion agrees, but he adds, "I don't see where it's the burden of the non-hunter. It's the burden of the hunter to make sure of what he's shooting at."
Latest Comments
The fact that human beings derive enjoyment from killing for "fun" is amazing to me. If our cat kills a beautiful bird, we are mad at the cat because it didn't need to kill for food, we feed it. So there is clearly a double standard here. There is no place for hunting in the developed world. It is a sick persuit on many levels.
Every year when gun hunting season opens I say to myself,"Someone will die this week".I'm seldom proved wrong much to my dismay.
Jess was a very dear friend of myne and it blows my mind knowing this man is walking free awaiting trial while Jess's friends and family mourns the loss of an amazing young woman. How do you mistake three people for deer? My job requires me to opperate utilizing night vision in terrible conditions and we can tell animals from people, it blows my mind this isn't considered murder. I love you Jess
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