Report out

[Southern Elk]

I’ve drawn my .44 mag revolver twice when being bluff charged by grizzlies. I feel that I could have gotten off a shot both times. Whether or not I would have made a fatal shot is another story. I practice drawing it from my holster and firing.

I do think a pistol would be useless if a person had never practiced with it or was unfamiliar with it all together.

 

[BuzzH]

Its always interesting to read all the second guessing and armchair quarterbacking.

Things like this are tragic and unfortunate, I wish there was a way around it. But, the fact is, every once in while situations go wrong and people die.

Its easy to say mistakes were made, and they should have done this or that. But how many thousands of times a year do hunters kill, quarter and pack elk, in grizzly country, and everything works out just fine?

 

[Sytes]

Always value in after action reports. Some may discard such reports - meh, to each his or her own.

This After Action Report provided valuable information. Reminders for some, New information for those looking to the enjoyment of the Wilderness, disregarded by those that portray themselves as God's gift, and exaggerated by others. Common human psyche.

Portions After Action Reports share that are great reminders are the following. There are other aspects though these catch my attention:

Uptain, who had a can of bear spray on his left hip, “did not deploy the spray at the time of the initial attack,” the report said. He sprayed the mother bear when it attacked him a second time.
An investigator told WyoFile in November he believed the spray “could have worked perfectly.” The report is now more certain.
“Evidence suggests that when Uptain deployed the bear spray, it stopped the aggression, giving him time to escape,” the report reads. “However, this appears to be after the fatal injuries were inflicted.”

Uptain had taken off his shirt and shoulder holster with his 10-mm Glock semi-automatic pistol and put them down about five yards away.

Investigators found the Glock with the slide forward, without a bullet in the chamber. “The gun was not fired as a defense against the attacking grizzly bears,” the report reads.

“The evidence suggests that the desire of the bears to feed on the elk carcass was the motivating factor in the incident,” the report states. “The grizzly bears likely attacked the two men in an attempt to displace them from the elk carcass…. The aggressive nature of the attack was unprovoked by the two men and cannot be characterized as defensive,” the report says. A diagram indicates that the bears dragged a quarter of the elk from the scene.

Instant activity can be driven over a thousand times though in the moment... it encompasses split second decisions. I view Uptain as a brave soul who likely saved his client's life. With that said, the objective evidence holds valuable reminders that we may learn, remind, or discount. LEO's are often involved in split second decisions. Reminds me of Graham v Connor. Always hindsight 20/20 though within, always advancing our response to situations.

 

[sschultz]

Its always interesting to read all the second guessing and armchair quarterbacking.

Things like this are tragic and unfortunate, I wish there was a way around it. But, the fact is, every once in while situations go wrong and people die

Its easy to say mistakes were made, and they should have done this or that. But how many thousands of times a year do hunters kill, quarter and pack elk, in grizzly country, and everything works out just fine?

For the win
But this is the Internet