Hunter Charged With Fatally Shooting 18-Year-Old He Believed Was Animal In Nockamixon State Park, DA Says
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- A teen was shot and killed while watching the sunset. Authorities in Bucks County announced charges Wednesday in the deadly shooting of a young man in Nockamixon State Park.
The Bucks County district attorney said this case was a hunting incident that turned tragic. Now one man is dead and another is in jail, facing homicide charges.
Fifty-two-year-old Kenneth Troy Heller, of Warminster, is in the Bucks County Jail tonight after a hunting incident that turned tragic.
"He's going to have to live with this for the rest of his life," Bucks County District Attorney Matt Weintraub said.
Weintraub says Heller was out hunting at Nockamixon State Park near Quakertown on Oct. 24 when he fired his rifle and killed 18-year-old Jason Kutt of Sellersville.
"Mr. Heller, as a hunter, took aim and shot what he believed to be an animal and believed to have killed what he shot," Weintraub said.
At the time of the shooting, police say Kutt and his girlfriend were sitting at the edge of the lake, watching the sunset.
After the shot was fired, she reported seeing a male hunter dressed in bright orange leaving the area.
Later, investigators announced they were looking for three vehicles seen nearby at the time, including a champagne-colored Chevy Blazer, like the one found in the suspect's driveway.
"We asked for the public's help because the case had been unsolved," Weintraub said.
That's when police say a coworker of Heller told a friend Heller hunts and drives a vehicle similar to the one police were looking for.
The friend then called police, leading officers to Heller.
"It was a tragically criminal misapprehension of what somebody thought they saw versus what they actually saw and what they shot at," Weintraub said.
The DA says Kutt was not the intended target. But Heller still faces charges, including criminal homicide.
The DA also expects the suspect to enter into a plea deal.
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