Harrison County sheriff on ‘tragic’ hunting accident: ‘I hope we never see another one like it’

Published 3:02 pm Monday, November 29, 2021

A hunter in Hallsville was adjusting his rifle Saturday — thinking the firearm was no longer loaded — when it went off and killed his 11-year-old daughter, according to Harrison County Sheriff Brandon “B.J.” Fletcher.

The girl, 11-year-old Daisy Grace Lynn George, was taken to Good Shepherd Medical Center in Longview, where she was later pronounced dead. She was a sixth-grade student at Hallsville Junior High.

Fletcher said during a news conference Monday that Daisy and her father had gotten into their vehicle after hunting Saturday afternoon at a deer lease near Young and Hickey roads. The father was clearing the hammer of his high-powered rifle and when he tried to drop the hammer, he believed the firearm was unloaded.

“He had thought he had cleared the gun, but unfortunately, he hadn’t,” Fletcher said.

The gun went off. Fletcher said the sheriff’s office has no reason to believe the gunshot was not accidental.

“It’s very trying to not work this case without emotion,” he said. “Anytime a young person loses their life it’s tragic.”

“I hope we never see another one like it,” Fletcher said about the incident.

On a GoFundMe page to raise money for funeral expenses for Daisy, Deborah George called the 11-year-old “an angel whose time was cut very short.”

“She was always a joker trying to lift everyone’s spirits,” Deborah George wrote. “She loved to draw her heart out. Daisy loved to be surrounded by the outdoors. Always down for an adventure big or small.”

Fletcher said he hopes the incident will bring light to the need to exercise gun safety.

The case will be reviewed by the Harrison County District Attorney’s Office, Fletcher said.

The sheriff’s office is working with other agencies, including Texas Parks and Wildlife, to perform the investigation and conduct interviews.

Fletcher told his deputies to seek counseling because of the nature of the incident.

The father had been hunting most of his life, according to Fletcher, who said the man’s experience demonstrates the importance of practicing gun safety at all times.

A Harrison County Sheriff’s Office investigator and crime scene investigator responded to the scene along with a game warden from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. Because the death occurred while hunting, the investigation will continue to be completed jointly by the sheriff’s office and Texas Parks and Wildlife.

The sheriff’s office started receiving calls about the incident shortly after 5 p.m. Saturday.

Harrison County deputies and other emergency units arrived at the scene and found the girl with life-threatening gunshot wounds.

Officials requested an aircraft to take the girl to the hospital; however, all emergency helicopters were grounded in the region due to inclement weather, officials said. She was then taken by EMS and escorted by HCSO, Hallsville PD, and the Texas Department of Public Safety to the hospital in Longview.

Capt. Tyler Owen of the Harrison County Sheriff’s Office said Sunday that Fletcher was working with Hallsville ISD Superintendent John Martin to coordinate grief counselors for all faculty and students affected by the loss of Daisy.

Hallsville Junior High on Facebook asked staff and students to wear purple Monday to honor Daisy. During the news conference, Fletcher asked people to wear purple (her favorite color) as well for the Hallsville Christmas Parade Tuesday evening.