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9 Comments
Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports
Former LSU offensive lineman Matt Branch had his leg amputated after he was accidentally shot in the thigh during a hunting trip in Eagle Lake, MS back on Dec. 28.

The accident happened when a dog on the trip jumped up on a truck bed and hit the safety of Branch's loaded shotgun and pulled the trigger. Per ESPN:
quote:

Micah Heckford told The Clarion Ledger that he and several others were on a duck-hunting trip near Eagle Lake on Dec. 28 when Matt Branch was accidentally hit by a blast from his shotgun, which he had left loaded in the bed of his pickup truck.

Heckford said a Labrador retriever named Tito jumped onto the truck bed, stepped on the safety of Branch's shotgun and pulled the trigger. Heckford said the 12-gauge shotgun shell fired through the side of the truck and hit Branch's left thigh.

"The gun shot," Heckford told the newspaper. "Everybody looked up. The first thing I saw was Matt, and within two to three seconds, he realized he was hit."
Branch is expected to recover but remains in intensive care.

The Monroe, La native played at LSU from 2009 to 2011 at offensive guard and tight end.

Filed Under: LSU Football
9 Comments
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Mahootney64 months
Sad story. Bad luck. There’s a good lesson to be learned by the rest of us from this tragedy. Don’t put a round in the chamber until you are ready to use it. Dropped guns, accidental safety trips, and other misfortunes can happen. Be careful and reduce the risk as much as possible.
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Bristol Dawg64 months
Yep. Could have happened to me on multiple occasions. From now on, I’m opening the chamber prior to placing in the back of the truck. Pheasant/Quail hunting, we’ve got the dogs all over the back.
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chinco banditos64 months
I am a hunter. Why in the hell would you leave a firearm, let alone a loaded one, where animals are running around it???
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Longstreet64 months
Shouldn’t have had shells in the chamber at that time.
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Snuffleupagus63 months
Thanks fricking Captain Hindsight
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Man so sad to hear! Get well soon Tiger!
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rondo63 months
Hopefully Tito is ok.
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Hair of the Dog64 months
A dog accidentally turned off the safety and squeezed the trigger with his foot. 12 gauges or any gun shouldn’t fire that easily. Sue the gun company.
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chinco banditos64 months
Can the gun company counter-sue for being irresponsible and leaving it the way he did. I own many firearms and every one of them has a round in the chamber. ZERO of them are left in a position Where something careless can happen.
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