Family devastated by teen's accidental death

Alex Plucknett would have turned 15 next week, an athletic Jacksonville eighth-grader with all the hopes and dreams of adolescence ahead of him.

He dreamed of being a big-league pitcher and even hurled a no-hitter last spring. An avid Scouter, he was elected by his peers to the Boy Scouts' National Honor Society. He recently got certified as a scuba diver, like his dad and older brother.

Hires

Those dreams ended tragically Saturday morning at a Baker County hunting camp when Plucknett was accidentally shot in the head during an outing with his family. Worsening his family's tragedy immeasurably, the shot was fired by his father, who mistook the teen's black cap for a wild hog.

Services are scheduled at 11 a.m. Wednesday at Isle of Faith United Methodist Church, 1821 San Pablo Road. Visitation is from 5:30 to 8 p.m. today at Hardage-Giddens Funeral Home in Jacksonville Beach.

"This family is devastated. They are hurting real bad," said Ted Hires, acting as the family's spokesman. "Alex was an exceptional young man [who] had a lot of dreams."

According to the Baker County Sheriff's Office, Plucknett was hunting with his 17-year-old brother, Jon, and their father, Dennis. Witnesses told deputies Alex Plucknett was in a ditch next to a tree about 225 yards from the camp, when someone yelled, "Hog!"

Dennis Plucknett grabbed his .308-caliber Ruger rifle with scope, steadied his shot on the hood of a bus and told police he fired one round at something black he saw moving in the distance. Deborah Bencivenni, another hunter at the camp who had climbed a ladder minutes before to search for game, told deputies as soon as she heard the shot she yelled, "Alex is setting by the tree."

How you can help Memorial donations for Alex Plucknettmay be sent to Boy Scouts Troop 623 at Isle of Faith United Methodist Church, Jacksonville FL 32224. A scholarship fund also has been established at the Educational Community Credit Union.

"Dennis and Jon immediately ran in the direction where Dennis thought he shot the hog, only to discover Alex lying on the ground with a gunshot wound to the back of his head," wrote Baker County Officer Charles Goldsmith. "Alex was wearing a black toboggan cap with a camouflage jacket without a reflective vest."

He died at the scene.

Baker County Sheriff Joey Dobson said he plans to meet with the State Attorney's Office today about the shooting but said there's "no question" it will be ruled accidental.

"There were no signs of foul play," Dobson said.

Plucknett attended Fletcher Middle School, where he was on the baseball team. He had played at Wingate Park in Jacksonville Beach since he was 4. He also was a member of the Boy Scouts of America Troop 623 at Isle of Faith, where he attained the Order of the Arrow.

The Plucknett family declined to release a picture of Alex and has asked Hires to field calls from reporters. Hires said his role as spokesman isn't related to the Justice Coalition, a victims' rights group he founded nine years ago.

"I reached out as a father because I lost a daughter last year," he said. "I don't know that there's anything that could happen to parents that's more devastating."

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