In the quiet landscape near Paulden, Arizona, a day of recreational target shooting among friends ended in tragedy. On a Sunday afternoon, June 30, 2019, 25-year-old Angel Perez from the nearby town of Chino Valley was fatally wounded. The group had just concluded their target practice on a forest service road, approximately four miles north of Paulden.
As they were packing up their firearms, the mood shifted irrevocably.
Another member of the party, 25-year-old Jose Cruz, also of Chino Valley, was handling his AR-15 rifle. Believing the weapon to be unloaded, he had placed it on the tailgate of their truck. When he returned to put the rifle into its case, he grabbed it by the empty magazine well. At that moment, as Angel Perez walked towards the tailgate, the firearm discharged a single round. The bullet struck Perez in his mid-section, inflicting a fatal injury.
In the immediate aftermath, a sense of shock and desperation filled the air. Jose Cruz frantically began administering first aid to his wounded friend, trying to staunch the bleeding and keep him alive until help could arrive. First responders were called to the scene around 3:30 p.m., but despite the immediate efforts to save him, Angel Perez was pronounced dead at the location.
Yavapai County Sheriff's deputies arrived to a somber scene. They conducted an extensive interview with a distraught Jose Cruz, who recounted the events leading to the accidental shooting. Investigators found no initial signs of foul play in the tragic incident. Consequently, Jose Cruz was not arrested. The case remained under investigation, with the possibility of the county attorney reviewing the circumstances for any potential charges at a later date. The untimely death of Angel Perez left a void in the lives of those who knew him, a stark reminder of the devastating potential of a single, unintended moment.
