Robert Alan Church was just 54 when a bullet found him near his place on Springer Road. It happened Saturday evening right outside Sweet Home. One minute things were normal. The next he was on the ground bleeding.
Deputies got the 911 call a little before 6 p.m. They rolled up to the house in Linn County and saw Church with a gunshot wound. First responders worked hard to keep him alive. Nothing worked. He died right there.
Investigators figured out pretty quick what went down. A hunter had fired a shot in the area. That same hunter stopped long enough to partly dress out a deer. Then he packed up the animal and drove off. Church took the bullet that was meant for something else.
Folks who knew Robert are left with a hole that nothing fills. He was a regular guy living his life in this part of Oregon. No big headlines about him before this. Now his name is tied to a night that went wrong in a hurry.
The sheriff’s office is still digging into every detail. They want to know exactly where that hunter stood and why the shot went the way it did. Nobody has stepped forward yet to claim the rifle that fired it.
Anyone who was out around Springer Road, Upper Calapooia Drive or Childers Drive near Brush Creek Road that evening needs to speak up. Maybe you saw a truck parked along the road. Maybe you heard the shot or spotted somebody hauling a deer. Even small things can help.
Detective Derek Klein is the man to call at 541-967-3950. Trail camera pictures or phone video from nearby places could make a real difference. The people who loved Robert deserve some clear answers about how this happened.
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