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CLOUDY Temp: 38 °F Wind: CLM at 0 mph Wednesday, April 2, 2003 SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA HomeLife Magazine W3 Magazine Jobs @ Mail Tribune Tempo A & E Oregon CarZone Wellness Connection Real Estate Newspaper in Education Prime Times Outdoor Journal Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find Everything E SOUTHERN OREGON Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar ABOUT US FAQ What's New Advertise Home Delivery Classified Ad Contact Us Media Kit Email Story to a Friend March 14, 2003 Homicide charged in hunting death Grand jury indicts an Eagle Point man who mistook another hunter for an elk last October By MARK FREEMAN Mail Tribune ROSEBURG — An Eagle Point man now faces a homicide charge for fatally shooting a camouflaged hunter that he mistook for an elk last fall in the Douglas County forest near Diamond Lake. A Douglas County grand jury Wednesday indicted Leslie Donald Baker, 59, on a count of criminally negligent homicide in the Oct. 19 death of Thomas Russell "Rusty" Peabody, 42, of Eagle Point. Peabody had carried the head and antlers of a bull elk out of the woods, and Baker told investigators that he saw the moving antlers and fired a single rifle shot alongside a gravel road in the Umpqua National Forest. But a Douglas County Sheriff’s Department report concludes that Peabody was shot in the back while sitting or leaning into his pickup bed, that the elk head and antlers were on the ground several feet from Peabody’s body and that Baker should easily have seen that he was shooting at a person, not an elk. The charge alleges that Baker fired the fatal shot while failing to be aware of a substantial and unjustifiable risk of shooting at a target he first did not identify. Peabody’s wife considered the indictment a "vindication" of her husband, who police initially said was shot while carrying the elk head — an image she said unfairly cast her husband as a bumbling hunter. "I feel like it is the right decision," said LeAnn Peabody, who testified before the grand jury earlier this week. "This way, my husband’s death is not in vain. "This was not an accident," she said. "It was a crime." Baker, who testified before the grand jury last month, was notified of the indictment through his attorney, Carl Caplan. Caplan did not return telephone calls Thursday for comment. An appearance date has not yet been set for Baker, said Rick Wesenberg, a deputy district attorney in Douglas County. If convicted, Baker could face a sentence ranging from fines and no jail time to as much as five years in prison. LeAnn Peabody said her husband was a Gulf War veteran and lifelong Rogue Valley resident who "lived and breathed hunting and fishing." The couple have four daughters. Peabody and Baker, though both from Eagle Point, apparently did not know each other, LeAnn Peabody said. Peabody, who was hunting alone, had killed an elk and had loaded the head and antlers on a backpack to hike back to his pickup, police reports state. Baker, who was hunting with his son, had stopped to urinate along the roadside when he spied antlers moving among the trees, police said. As Baker took his gun out of his pickup, Peabody placed the backpack on the ground several feet from his own pickup. The two were about 65 yards from each other. Baker then fired at Peabody still thinking he was an elk, police said. The Bakers then discovered Peabody, who a medical examiner said likely died instantly from his wound, sheriff’s reports state. Peabody was not wearing bright hunting clothing, which is not required under Oregon law but encouraged. Police reports say there was a narrow window through the dense Douglas fir between Baker and Peabody. However, investigators recreating the incident while using Baker’s rifle and scope said Baker should easily have seen that Peabody was not an elk. "It was a bad choice, a bad decision," LeAnn Peabody said. "It destroyed our lives and the life of Mr. Baker." In a similar case in 2001, Medford hunter Ryan Wilson told police that he mistook a camouflage-clothed Donald Hauser for a deer when he shot and killed Hauser, Wilson’s boyhood friend. Wilson was convicted on a charge of second-degree manslaughter and now is serving a mandatory 75-month prison term. Reach reporter Mark Freeman at 776-4470, or e-mail [email protected] Printer Friendly Version Email Story to a Friend Subscribe Archive: Click to Search Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2003 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy Website Feedback A D V E R T I S E R S