Wichita man killed in Durham hunting accident
STAR-JOURNAL STAFF
A rural Durham farm was the scene of a deadly hunting accident last Thursday that claimed the life of a Wichita man.
Zachary Ellis, 21, was pronounced dead on arrival Thursday night at the Hillsboro Community Medical Center. Preliminary investigations indicate that Ellis was accidentally shot in the chest by a bolt-action sixteen-gauge shotgun.
According to Marion County Sheriff's reports, Zachary Ellis and his father, Glenn, both of Wichita, were hunting doves on the north Durham property of a distant relative. The land is located at 3017 Goldenrod, said Sheriff Lee Becker.
At approximately 4:15 p.m., Zachary reached into the bed of his truck to retrieve a vest, and that's when his shotgun accidentally discharged, Becker said.
The shotgun fired just one shot, which hit the victim directly in the upper torso/chest area. His father immediately drove him to HCMC while the landowners dialed 911.
The man was dead on arrival, Becker said.
Authorities are still investigating exactly how the gun fired on its own, Becker said. One main theory is that as the victim leaned into the truck, part of his clothing may have caught the trigger of the gun and caused it to fire.
"But they're just theories," Becker stressed.
Currently, the gun has been sent to the Sedgwick County Forensic Center for further investigation.
The case is being investigated by the Marion County Sheriff's Department, the Hillsboro Police Department, and Kansas Wildlife and Parks.
