(C) Iowa Capital Dispatch.
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No criminal charges expected for deer hunter death

['Jared Strong', 'More From Author', '- December']

Date: 2021-12-14 00:00:00


The person who shot and killed a fellow deer hunter near Knoxville this month will not be charged with a crime, according to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources.

Nathan Allen Sharpnack, 37, of Winterset, was shot about 2:45 p.m. on Dec. 4 as he sought to push deer in the direction of fellow hunters who were part of a 20-person group. It was the first day of the state’s shotgun deer season.

The group was hunting in a public area near Lake Red Rock north of Knoxville that is mostly wooded with rolling hills. The person who shot Sharpnack was about 150 yards from him. A shotgun slug struck Sharpnack in the torso.

None of the hunters had consumed alcohol, said Mick Klemesrud, a DNR spokesperson.

“Based on the evidence, no charges were filed,” Klemesrud said.

Sharpnack was taking part in a “deer drive,” a tactic in which a hunting party splits into two groups. One group typically attempts to startle deer in the direction of the other.

Another hunter in Allamakee County in far northeast Iowa was shot that weekend during a deer drive, the DNR said. A shotgun slug grazed his right and forearm.

In Muscatine County in eastern Iowa a hunter was severely injured when a fellow hunter shot at a running deer and struck the man in his midsection.

Jamie Cook, a hunter education coordinator for the DNR, said group hunts need a well-defined plan to help prevent hunters from shooting in the direction of their companions.

“It’s the most essential part of every hunt,” he said.

Deer hunters are required by the state to wear orange tops while hunting with firearms to make them more visible to other hunters.

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