On a Friday evening in the Sumter National Forest, a hunting trip turned tragic, ending the life of 40-year-old Bradford “Brad” Phillip Todd. A male with connections to Greenwood, SC, Todd was in Abbeville County on November 1, 2013, when the fatal incident occurred. An avid outdoorsman, he was reportedly hunting for feral hogs on the ground.
The sound of a single gunshot from a. 300-caliber Winchester Magnum hunting rifle pierced the evening air between 6:30 and 7:00 p.m.
The shot was fired by another hunter, a 60-year-old man from Pickens County, who was positioned in an elevated tree stand hunting for deer. Believing he saw movement in the low light, he fired, striking Todd in the back. The two men were not acquainted with each other.
Realizing what had happened, the shooter immediately called 911 to report the incident. An investigation was launched by the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources, along with the Abbeville County Coroner's Office. Authorities noted that at the time of the shooting, Todd was not wearing the legally required orange vest, though he did have an orange hat in his possession.
The investigation into the death of Bradford Todd was treated as a hunting accident. Online sources and news reports from the time and in the years following the incident do not contain information about any arrests being made or charges being filed against the hunter who fired the shot. The case was characterized by officials as a tragic example of mistaken identity in the woods.
