The investigation is ongoing following the death of a Ridgeley man who was shot while hunting in Colorado. According to the Grand County Sheriff’s Office just before 10am on Nov 9th a group of hunters in the southern portion of Game Management Unit 27 contacted law enforcement to report that a member of the party had been shot by another member party. The victim 26 year old Simon Jacob Howell from Ridgeley, West Virginia, was pronounced deceased as a result of the shooting. The circumstances of the incident remain under investigation. According to Grand County Coroner Brenda Bock, the victim died of a gunshot wound.
There have been no arrests made in the incident to date, and the alleged shooter remains cooperative with investigators.
The Grand County Sheriff’s Office is being assisted by the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, Colorado Park and Wildlife (CPW), 144h Judicial District Attorney’s Office and the Grand County Coroner’s Office.
Although it is early on in the investigation, this appears to be an isolated incident and the area remains open for hunting.
When the investigation is complete it will be evaluated by the 14th Judicial District Attorney’s Office for any possible criminal charges. According to the CPW, hunting fatalities are rare in Colorado. Each year, more than 500,000 licensed hunters take to the field in Colorado. In 2019, only five hunting-related injuries were reported to CPW with no fatalities. The last Colorado hunting fatality was on Nov. 5, 2018. That incident also occurred in Grand County.