November 8, 2011
By Karen Voyles, Gainesville.com
The boy was with his grandfather at the time
A 12-year-old Dixie County boy died in an apparently accidental
shooting Tuesday while hunting with his grandfather after school.
Bryan Austin Osteen, 12, was pronounced dead at the scene,
according to the Dixie County Sheriff's Office. The Florida Fish and
Wildlife Conservation Commission is also investigating the incident.
Sheriff's Maj. Scott Harden said the boy and grandfather were
hunting on private land about three miles south of Cross City and
east of Southeast 377th Street when the accident happened about 5:15
p.m. at the boy's tree stand. The boy's shotgun fired once, striking
him in the upper torso, Harden said.
"The grandfather was nearby, but did not see what happened,"
Harden said.
"We think he (Bryan) was either climbing up into his tree stand or
getting down or maybe he just fell out of it."
The grandfather told investigators that he heard Bryan's gun go
off and was walking toward the boy's tree stand when he saw Bryan on
the ground. The tree stand was about 12 feet off the ground, Harden
estimated.
According to Harden, the fatal shooting appears accidental, and
foul play is not suspected.
Bryan's body was taken to the Medical Examiner's Office in
Gainesville, where an autopsy is expected to be performed Wednesday.
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