Victim in grizzly attack was shot by friend trying to save him

KNKX Public Radio | By The Associated Press

Published September 23, 2011 at 4:32 PM PDT

BILLINGS, Mont. — Authorities say a hunter attacked by a grizzly in a Montana forest was killed not by the bear, but by a gunshot fired by a companion trying to save him.

Lincoln County Sheriff Roby Bowe said Friday that 39-year-old Steve Stevenson of Winnemucca, Nev., died of a single gunshot wound to the chest. The cause of death was determined by the medical examiner with the Montana State Crime Lab.

The shot was fired by 20-year-old Ty Bell, also of Winnemucca, as he attempted to stop the bear's attack.

Bell had earlier shot and wounded what he thought was a black bear during a Sept. 16 hunting trip along the Montana-Idaho border. The two men tracked the wounded grizzly into thick cover, where it apparently turned on Stevenson.

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