Dad accidentally shoots son, thought he was a turkey

I happen to know these people and the fact that you can make judgements about people without knowing them is pathetic! Yes he made a mistake.. we all make them fortunately for the rest of us it didn’t cost of the lives of our children. I hope that you could maybe find one ounce of compassion in yourselves and think before you speak!!

Nobody likes to read about an 8 year old boy being killed in what seems to be such a preventable death. With that being said, I would like to note that this death was the first hunting related accident in the area in 17 years.

Why is it that we don’t see the outrage when we read about all the children who are killed every day by drive by shootings in our inner cities? The truth is hunting in comparison to baseball, football or even soccer is safer. Read any statistic on accidents or injuries comparing youth football to youth hunters and I assure you will find the same. In fact The child had a better chance of being killed on the drive to the hunting area than he did actually hunting.

It’s hard to deal with a tragedy such as this, but scape goating hunters for using shotguns, or questioning why people even use camouflage for hunting is absurd. My prayers are with the family

While I do not like hunting, and would never personally go, it is still a legal sport in the U.S., one which many families do together to bond. This father was doing nothing but trying to spend time and form a closer bond with his son. Yes, guns CAN be dangerous, but so can sports or riding a bike, or even taking a Sunday drive. Accidents happen, no matter how hard you try to prevent them.

This is not the same as “playing with guns”, as this father was probably adamant on teaching gun safety, as most hunters are. This accident is no different than a parent who unknowingly backs up their vehicle and runs over their child they didn’t know was there. Would we blame cars for that? Would we say the parent put their child in danger by owning a car? Even teaching children to not stand behind cars, and knowing that you should always check behind the car first doesn’t always work, since there are times children forget, and you are in a hurry.

I could never pretend to know the horror that father felt the instant he knew he had shot his son. For those that want to blame him, put yourself in his position. What if you accidentally ran over your child, or accidentally spilled boiling water on them while cooking, etc. It only takes one second to make a mistake that would last a lifetime. Imagine the extreme pain and guilt you would forever carry with you.

My heart truly goes out to that father and his family. I only hope that father could someday forgive himself and understand that sometimes the best intentions can lead to destruction. We can’t predict or control the future; we can only live our lives to their fullest, knowing that doing so sometimes tempts fate against our favor.

Gracie, so how it is okay for Gerry to wish the dad to be hurt in a hunting accident? You call this arguing in a mature manner? Interesting. Personaly I think Andrea’s note above speaks well of this sorry event.

oh and by the way tony [his dad] didnt take hunter with him to go turkey hunting hunter had followed his dad into the woods thinking he’d be able to hunt with his dad and he wore camo not knowing to wear bright orange when hunting turkeys because hes only 8 his 9th birthday being on the 29th the dad had no idea that hunter had followed him into the woods and he had mistaken hunter for a turkey because A] he couldnt see him and B] Hunter wasnt suppost to be outside anyways so Tony had no idea

Well said. How very very sad this truly is. He was a beautiful boy. I know Amber and met Tony at the wake and I know that if I were in this position that I truly don’t know what I would do. We all do dumb things at times and thank God that those don’t turn into a lifetime of grief as this has. After I left the funeral home I put life back into perspective and will try not to sweat the small petty things that really don’t mean anything but at times we make it a big deal with our kids. The barefooted little prince should teach us all a lesson..love your kids and just try to do the best you can.

I completely agree with Andrea’s post. My heart, too, goes out to this family. They will have to endure a lifelong tragedy. May they somehow recover. I cannot imagine what it must take for Tony to keep up his own will to live. I am sure he is hanging on by a very thin thread. Just last week, when it seemed that summer was here, my 3 year old daughter ran out of the house. I ran after her, but she was so darn fast. She was almost in the street by the time I got to her. Had a car been coming, as fast as some speed through our neighborhood, she would have been hit. I am sure everyone would have asked where I was – how I am unfit parent, etc., etc. My point being – I am very responsible – and I love my daughter. I would never want for one second to cause her pain or suffering – and by all means death. We ALL have done things that could be considered hazardous / wreckless to ourselves and others. Tony obviously knows everything that happened that fateful day. I am sure he replays it every second. I am positive that any blaming that there is – he has already done on himself. He certainly doesn’t need society pointing out the things he ALREADY knows in his heart. My God, where is the compassion and sensitivity? If nothing else, let him respectfully bury his boy. I can only conclude that there are a lot of unhappy people in the world who have to say wickedly mean things – judge others, just so they feel self righteous and mighty. May this family surround themselves with the love of family and friends. I will be thinking and praying for you…. as I know many strangers, like myself, are praying for you. I am just so sorry.

As a drunk and a drug abuser who chose to use a firearm while affected by those substances, he was a ‘killer’ waiting for a ‘victim’.
I suppose the law will now permanently remove from him that Second Amendment right which he was too irresponsible to retain.

He is also unfit to be a parent, and that privilege, too, has been removed.

The sad part is that his wife (and others who know him) let him go so far.

A tragic accident to be sure. I can’t imagine the grief that Tony and his family must be going through. There is no doubt that Tony had no intentions of harming his son, and being a hunter myself can’t think of a better way to spend time with a son you care about than taking him out hunting with you. That being said as a hunter there is also no question that Tony was at fault on multiple levels. You should never take a shot without knowing exactly what you are shooting at. Drinking and firearms don’t mix!! Trespassing and not having a license while may be small infractions in the grand scheme of things is not something you should be teaching the next generation of hunters. He was a careless and disrespectful hunter that made a horrible mistake. No one deserves the punishment he received, however there is no question that he was as fault and there really isn’t a good excuse. There is no doubt he is fully aware of that fact, and at this point the best thing anyone can do is pray for both Tony and his family.

I feel that this incident was most defiantly a tradegy. Something this family will live with forever. Not because they want to but because the pain will never go away. Hunter and his dad were very close, if you would have to give an award to “Best Father and Son” They would definatly win it. Tony was Hunters best friend they did practically EVERYTHING together. When I had heard the news at first i didn’t know what to think. I was in shock about the whole situation. I have spent sometime with this family since the incident and it amazes me how strong they are because i could never handle this situation like they are right now. Everyone who wants to leave a nasty comment on here and has no idea who this family is i suggest you just think about it before you press the send button do you really know what your saying? I understand that you may be angry, but by saying these rude comments aren’t going to change things so you should just keep them to yourself. If you dont know Hunter or Tony and how close they were i Gurrentee if you were to see them together for even 15 minutes you know that this was never anything intentional. My heart goes out to you [ Amber, Tony, Ashley and Alison ]. I am always here for you!

Ok all of you people who talk bad stuff about my daddy is not true. He is the best and most loving guy in the world, he is my hero and my loving and protective daddy! My dad cannot go to jail, and i need him to save me when i am in trouble. i need him to see me grow up, graduate and do many more fun things! my daddy did do those horrible things, and he did say to my face that he regrets all of his mistakes, and give my dad a break, we did just loose one of the most important boys of our lives. But i am glad to say that i love and forgive him all the way, i love him more than any guy on earth, he truely is my HERO! Hunter’s loving older sister xoxo Ashley

If any of you knew TK, you would say that this is a horrible deal. Not only is he a good person, he would give you the shirt off his back. He is a great father. Mistake yup no doubt. Many of us didn’t know about the pot at all. What we do know was this hit so close to home that we are all still in shock. If you knew Tony/Amber & the family you would be saying the same thing.

Its unreal, but there is a lesson to be learned and Tony & Amber are going through that right now. He is a good person, such a good person that as a single guy I would serve his sentence anyth8ing he was ordered, just so he could be home being a father to his 2 girls. Thats how much I feel for this family. Again no doubt bad deal, but I would serve his time, just so he can heal………100 guarentee I would do that for this family.

WHY TAKE A NINE YEAR OLD KID HUNTING WITH YOU?! There’s a reason why guns cannot be sold to minors. And come on…mistaking a human for a turkey? Make sure you know where the people you are hunting with are so you don’t shoot them! I mean, tragic ending, yes…but this has got to be the most dumbass thing someone has done since well, they made the movie Jackass. Call me what you’d like, I’m eighteen, old enough to understand tragedies like this, and young enough to see what a dumb move taking your nine year old son hunting with you is. No way would I have gone hunting with my dad at that age, whether or not he was a sharpshooter for the Marines.

there is nothing wrong with hunting…but its an adult sport i dont know why a nine year old would have been allowed to go with never mind be allowed to wander on his own. why would you have pulled the trigger not knowing for sure it was a turkey and the exact location of your son. Im sorry for their loss but the dad did not make good choices

I feel so sorry for that guy.

Don’t u think that the dad had to aim his gun? The dad probably even used a scope!! And plus aren’t hunters suppost to hunt with orange hats on? Unless the dad was look for a big ass hat wearing turkey I say he did it on purpose!