Man, 18, is shot dead 'by a hunter' while watching the sunset with his girlfriend in a Pennsylvania park
An 18-year-old man was shot dead - possibly by a hunter - while watching the sunset with his girlfriend in a Pennsylvania state park over the weekend.
Jason Kutt, of West Rockhill Township, was found suffering from a gunshot wound to the back of the neck near Nockamixon State Park in Bucks County at around 5.15pm on Saturday.
Paramedics were summoned to the scene and rushed Kutt to St Luke's University Hospital, where he was pronounced dead from his injuries early Monday morning.
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Jason Kutt, 18, was watching the sunset with his girlfriend at Nockamixon State Park in Pennsylvania on Saturday when he was fatally shot in the neck
The young man was struck by a single bullet at this spot at 5.15pm on Saturday
Kutt's girlfriend reported seeing a man in an orange hunting vest standing at this location about 500 feet away and looking at them
Bucks County District Attorney Matt Weintraub said during a press conference on Monday afternoon that Kutt and his girlfriend were sitting at the edge of Old Ridge Road in front of a lake, waiting for the sun to set, when a single gunshot rang out and the victim fell backwards.
Kutt's girlfriend reported seeing a male hunter dressed in a bright orange vest standing behind a gate about 500 feet away, looking in their direction.
People with hunting permits are allowed to hunt in the state park. Saturday was the last day of the season when hunters could use specific firearms to hunt deer and small game.
Kutt graduated from Pennridge High School in June and celebrated his 18th birthday in August of this year
Weintraub said it would have been difficult for the hunter to mistake Kutt, who was 6-foot-3 and wearing a hat with a bright orange brim, for an animal.
‘We want to get to the bottom of this,’ Weintraub said. ‘We don’t have any suspects, we don’t even know if a crime has been committed yet, but we need to understand how Jason Kutt died and we need your help to do that.’
Weintraub called on the hunter to come forward and share information on the shooting, which he believes may have been a 'terrible accident.'
‘If you are in fact responsible, if you have an explanation or some version of events that you want to explain to us, please come forward,’ Weintraub said, addressing the unidentified hunter directly. ‘Jason Kutt and his family deserve that explanation.’
When asked if Kutt may have been deliberately targeted by someone, Weintraub was sceptical, noting that the 18-year-old had no known enemies.
Bucks County's top prosecutor said Kutt had no known enemies and had done nothing wrong
‘This was a young kid with his whole life ahead of him,’ said the prosecutor. ‘ had done nothing wrong, had done nothing to incur any wrath from anyone. This is just a terrible tragedy, and right now we are trying to find out who was at the other end of that gun and whether a crime had been committed.’
Kutt graduated from Pennridge High School in June and celebrated his 18th birthday in August of this year.
‘He loved playing his guitars, video games, and taking walks in nature to take amazing pictures and spending time with his girlfriend,’ Jason’s father, Ronald Kutt, wrote in a Facebook post. ‘Please remember to hug your loved ones because tomorrow is never promised.’
Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to call Bucks County Detectives at 215-348-6868 or 215-340-8140.