Hunting guide killed following firearm discharge in Baker County
By Logan Bagett on Monday, November 11th, 2024 in Eastern/Southeast Oregon News More Top Stories Northeastern Oregon News
HALFWAY – (Press Release from the Baker County Sheriff’s Office)
On November 10, 2024, at approximately 7:53 a.m. Baker County Sheriff’s Office Dispatch
received a 911 call from an SOS device reporting a hunter had suffered a gunshot wound and
was not breathing.
Deputies and medical personnel responded to the area, which was located along Fish Creek
approximately one and a half miles north of Highway 86 on private property in Halfway,
Oregon. Sheriff Ash deployed Baker County Search and Rescue to assist with transporting the
injured party to medics.
Upon arrival, law enforcement personnel met with the involved parties, Leroy George Trautman
(73yoa) of Beaverton, Oregon and Andrew Mark Krebs (73yoa) of Oregon City, Oregon. Both
men were riding in a side-by-side with their hunting guide, Jon Marshall Nichols (62yoa) of
Halfway, Oregon when they spotted a herd of elk. All parties exited the side-by-side. As
Trautman chambered a round, the rifle discharged striking Nichols in the back. Trautman and
Krebs performed CPR on Nichols but were unsuccessful.
The investigation into this incident is ongoing.
Baker County Sheriff’s Office was assisted by Oregon State Police, Halfway Ambulance, and
Baker County Search and Rescue.
