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Not me. They are from Ohio.
Long post so stick with me, but we’ve gotten so many texts and calls, I figured it was time. I’ve went back and forth about making a post, but decided to take all of this as hopefully a learning experience for everyone out there hunting.
Saturday night Zack and I decided to go turkey hunting. We had planned to get up at 4am on Sunday and go, just like we do every year. Zack came in the bedroom to wake me up yesterday morning and I decided I was going to stay home because Blair had been up all night. Zack decided he was still going to go by himself (not something uncommon for him, we all know the guy loves his hunting and outdoors) around 8:40 yesterday I had just put my phone down and walked away and came back to two missed calls and a message saying “answer your phone, I just got shot” when I tell you my heart sank.. I cannot ever describe that feeling. I tried calling Zack back with no answer, I called Tammy and could tell by the sound in her voice that it was real, nobody had gotten to Zack yet. He finally called me back, all he could tell me was he had been shot in his face, shoulder and chest but couldn’t tell me how bad it was yet just that he was bleeding everywhere and was on his way down the hill where his dad already was. Zack was shot by a guy in a group of 3 guys at around 60 yards out because “they thought he was a turkey”
This mistake should NEVER happen, however, it was what happened next that lit me on fire. None of those 3 guys tried to follow Zack or help him down off the hill, none of them called 911 or Game Warden, Zack had to do all of that himself. Whenever Zack tried to get them to come down with him to the road they said they “couldn’t because they had to get their stuff” and refused to come down the same way as Zack. They took another route closer to their truck, where Zack already had called family making sure they didn’t try to leave. They were out of towners that lived over 3 hours away, nobody knew who they were. One guy in the group even tried to make gaslighting comments making it sound like it was zack’s fault. It takes nothing to be a decent human and own up to your own mistakes. These 3 did none of that, that’s where I have the issue.
Zack ended up with multiple wounds on his face, chest and shoulders, none of them on the chest entered, just ended up with a bunch of bruising on his chest, we ended up getting two fragments out of his face and one more still in his face that we’ll have to go have removed. His eye is completely swollen shut today and bruised. We are truly thankful that he was 60 yards out, had not much more time went by and he been 40 yards or less out from the guys, this could’ve honestly had a way more devastating outcome. Zack was in an open area, with no decoys out, he wasn’t calling and there was no turkey in between him and the three guys, he was standing up walking directly at the group. We truly will never understand how they could say they “thought he was a turkey” for guys who claim to have been hunting for “over 40 years”
Please be careful and be aware of your surroundings while out there. We are so thankful that he isn’t hurt any worse, he is more than lucky. We know a lot of younger kids out there hunting, we are so glad it wasn’t a child or that Zack didn’t have a younger kid with him. PLEASE do not pull the trigger until you absolutely know what you’re shooting at, the absolute first rule, ALWAYS. Please be mindful, you are not the only one out there. Please be safe and if something does happen, please do the right thing to get that person the care they need.
Thank you to all of the texts and calls and thank you to everyone who showed up yesterday or took care of the kids. Every Game Warden, sheriff and EMT that responded was great. Holzer ER also took great care of him as well (even if I did have to force him to go be looked at). Luckily, all of his wounds are things he can recover from, but the situation is still too close to being a different outcome and should never happen.
I am thankful that he is still with us, I am thankful my babies father is still here and I will forever be thanking God he was 60 yards out.
Long post so stick with me, but we’ve gotten so many texts and calls, I figured it was time. I’ve went back and forth about making a post, but decided to take all of this as hopefully a learning experience for everyone out there hunting.
Saturday night Zack and I decided to go turkey hunting. We had planned to get up at 4am on Sunday and go, just like we do every year. Zack came in the bedroom to wake me up yesterday morning and I decided I was going to stay home because Blair had been up all night. Zack decided he was still going to go by himself (not something uncommon for him, we all know the guy loves his hunting and outdoors) around 8:40 yesterday I had just put my phone down and walked away and came back to two missed calls and a message saying “answer your phone, I just got shot” when I tell you my heart sank.. I cannot ever describe that feeling. I tried calling Zack back with no answer, I called Tammy and could tell by the sound in her voice that it was real, nobody had gotten to Zack yet. He finally called me back, all he could tell me was he had been shot in his face, shoulder and chest but couldn’t tell me how bad it was yet just that he was bleeding everywhere and was on his way down the hill where his dad already was. Zack was shot by a guy in a group of 3 guys at around 60 yards out because “they thought he was a turkey”
This mistake should NEVER happen, however, it was what happened next that lit me on fire. None of those 3 guys tried to follow Zack or help him down off the hill, none of them called 911 or Game Warden, Zack had to do all of that himself. Whenever Zack tried to get them to come down with him to the road they said they “couldn’t because they had to get their stuff” and refused to come down the same way as Zack. They took another route closer to their truck, where Zack already had called family making sure they didn’t try to leave. They were out of towners that lived over 3 hours away, nobody knew who they were. One guy in the group even tried to make gaslighting comments making it sound like it was zack’s fault. It takes nothing to be a decent human and own up to your own mistakes. These 3 did none of that, that’s where I have the issue.
Zack ended up with multiple wounds on his face, chest and shoulders, none of them on the chest entered, just ended up with a bunch of bruising on his chest, we ended up getting two fragments out of his face and one more still in his face that we’ll have to go have removed. His eye is completely swollen shut today and bruised. We are truly thankful that he was 60 yards out, had not much more time went by and he been 40 yards or less out from the guys, this could’ve honestly had a way more devastating outcome. Zack was in an open area, with no decoys out, he wasn’t calling and there was no turkey in between him and the three guys, he was standing up walking directly at the group. We truly will never understand how they could say they “thought he was a turkey” for guys who claim to have been hunting for “over 40 years”
Please be careful and be aware of your surroundings while out there. We are so thankful that he isn’t hurt any worse, he is more than lucky. We know a lot of younger kids out there hunting, we are so glad it wasn’t a child or that Zack didn’t have a younger kid with him. PLEASE do not pull the trigger until you absolutely know what you’re shooting at, the absolute first rule, ALWAYS. Please be mindful, you are not the only one out there. Please be safe and if something does happen, please do the right thing to get that person the care they need.
Thank you to all of the texts and calls and thank you to everyone who showed up yesterday or took care of the kids. Every Game Warden, sheriff and EMT that responded was great. Holzer ER also took great care of him as well (even if I did have to force him to go be looked at). Luckily, all of his wounds are things he can recover from, but the situation is still too close to being a different outcome and should never happen.
I am thankful that he is still with us, I am thankful my babies father is still here and I will forever be thanking God he was 60 yards out.
. Were there any charges made against the other 3 hunters?
