Direction Berseth example essay topic

369 words
Chippewa County, Wisconsin Hunter, Michael Berseth was muzzleloading during the final days of the 2001 hunting season. He was hunting with a. 50 caliber muzzleloading rifle. He thought he saw a flash of a white tailed deer. He shot. When he came upon what he shot he found the body of his 47-year-old neighbor Deborah Prasnicki, wearing a white scarf, who was out walking her two dogs.

Berseth immediately called for help over his two-way radio. Two of his friends came over. They both thought he had shot a buck. Berseth had been hunting for many years and had used this particular rifle for 3 years. He and his friends had begun to hunt at 2: 00 p.m. Berseth Shot and killed Deborah Prasnicki at 4: 44 p.m.

The family of the victim did not agree with the state's decision to prosecute Berseth because they believed the shooting was accidental, and did not believe that he should serve 15 years for the charge of second degree reckless homicide which he has been charged. William Schwengel, a conservation warden with the Wisconsin department of natural resources, testified in the afternoon about Berseth's position the day of the shooting: where he was standing, what direction he was facing, and what direction he thought the "deer" was headed. But jurors indicated that the plodding, technical details were not lost on them. After both lawyers examined the witness, jurors had a chance to submit written questions (common practice in Wisconsin courts) to Judge Thomas S asama, who read them aloud. One juror asked what direction Berseth told investigators he was facing when he shot (Schwengel answered northeast), while another asked whether it would ruin the meat to shoot at a deer's hind quarters (Schwengel said it would). Verdict Berseth was found not guilty.

The jury concluded that the shooting was an accident. The victim's sister, Sharon Jorgenson, sat with Berseth, and was happy the case was finally over. "To be personal, my sister and I feel it was just a very bad accident", The Jury deliberated 2 1/2 hours before reaching a verdict..