Ferrum, VA - A young woman's life has been cut short, a hunter is facing very serious charges, and a college campus is stricken with grief.

Wednesday, it was all sinking in at Ferrum College that 23-year-old student Jessica Goode of McLean is gone, shot to death when a hunter apparently mistook her for a deer and fired. She was set to graduate next month.

The same bullet also hit 20-year-old sophomore Regis Boudinot of Frederick County in the arm. We're told he's still in the hospital, with non-life threatening injuries.

Regis Boudinot

The shooting happened about a mile off campus, while the students were just working on a class project.

Students say Ferrum College is so tightknit, Tuesday's tragedy shook every fiber.

"I would've never thought that anything like this would happen," Ferrum Sophomore Alex Carter said.

"Students are very upset, very hard situation right now for everyone. It's the Ferrum family, so," Ferrum, Jr. Joshua Horan said.

The community packed Vaughn Chapel Wednesday morning for a private prayer service to help friends and faculty reach out to each other and heal from Jessica Goode's death.

Director of Public Relations Natalie Faunce said, "She was the life of the party they said, and just a fun, live-life-to-the-fullest kind of person."

Road blocked in area where accident occurred.

Their thoughts are with Regis Boudinot, too. The same bullet that took Goode's life, injured him.

Boudinot's friend Megan Patterson said, "It's crazy that it happens right behind campus. It was just hiking gone bad."

Investigators continued to gather evidence in the clearing where the students were collecting frogs for a biology class.

A third student who was with them is not being named.

They say 31-year-old Jason Cloutier of Ferrum shot Goode and Boudinot through the thick brush.

"It's kind of hard to believe that you would mistake a person for a deer," Carter said.

Ferrum College says students frequent the area for research and recreation. It's owned by Franklin County, but they say no hunting is allowed here.

"Every year around this time we communicate with our students it is hunting season, to be aware. If they're out in the woods, wear blaze orange and be cognizant of that," Faunce said.

But none of the students were wearing orange.

Jason Cloutier

"There's so many trails and so many hiking areas around here, that people go hiking all the time. I hope this is a wake-up call," Patterson said.

Cloutier of Ferrum is charged with manslaughter, trespassing to hunt, and reckless handling of a firearm.

DGIF says he had permission to hunt on adjacent private property, but he crossed over into county land. He is out of jail on a $20,000 bond.

 

 

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