Autopsy's harrowing details
On October 18, 2014, Huber and Liniger were home in Whitehorse at the log cabin inn they operated called Breath of Wilderness in Johnson's Crossing, Yukon.

After hearing their dog barking wildly at something in the yard, Liniger went outside and saw a bear approaching, so he returned inside with the dog.

"It is believed that the bear may have viewed the dog as potential prey," the report said.

The 375-pound beast circled the single story home, coming to a stop at a window. "When the bear put his front paws on the window glass, the window gave way and the bear came crashing into the living room."

According to the report, the grizzly chased the dog around the room, then left the house. Huber and Liniger, meanwhile, ran outside to the driveway, where each locked themselves inside their individual cars.

That didn't deter the bear.

"The bear got onto the hood of the vehicle that Ms. Huber was in and repeatedly jumped on the hood," before it turned its attention to Liniger's vehicle.

The bear seemed to spook at Liniger's repeated honking of his horns, according to the report, and started to run away. Huber took the opportunity to run to be with her husband inside his car.

"When Ms. Huber exited the vehicle, the bear attacked her," says the report. Liniger ran inside to get his gun, but when he returned, "the bear had drug Ms. Huber approximately 20 meters across a creek and up onto the opposite bank."

Liniger fired several rounds at the bear -- which was on top of Huber at this point -- so many that he ran out of bullets and had to return to the house to reload before he finally fired the fatal shots.

That Huber died from a bullet aimed for her attacker was not only a tragic twist, but also an unexpected one, at least for investigators. "External body examination was difficult due to the significant amount of tissue damage," the report says. "Examination of the clothing Ms. Huber was wearing at the time of the attack did not suggest a possible gunshot wound."

Macdonald's report said Huber played dead during the attack. "However, because the attack on Ms. Huber was predatory in nature, it unfortunately wasn't the correct response," Macdonald wrote.

Playing dead deters only certain bears in certain situations. This week, for example, a New Jersey Boy Scout leader who unknowingly walked into a black bear's den successfully thwarted the attack by pretending to be dead. That bear likely felt threatened, officials explained, which is why it attacked the man initially, but stopped once he appeared dead.

As part of her report issued Thursday, the coroner made a plea to the Yukon government: "More education is need to inform the public about the different types of bear encounters and the appropriate responses for each type of encounter."

That's a tough one. Sad as it is, it may have spared her an even more horrible death. We had a very similar case here 2 years ago, kid shot a grizz thinking it was a black bear. They walked in on it and the grizz took down his friend, guy shoots the bear but also shot and killed his buddy. What a mess!

quote:

Liniger ran inside to get his gun

Why did he leave the house the 2nd time without it in the first place. Sounds like he had plenty of time to get it as the bear "circled the house"

Bear in my yard the first thing I grab is a loaded firearm. Bear in my yard chasing the dog would be a dead bear really soon.

What no keys to start the vehicle and run it over.

Panic = mistakes.

Dave

I feel bad that the lady died but if the write-up was anywhere near accurate, it was a cluster fuck from start to finish.
If I lived in grizz country, I'd certainly have a well thought out plan for any encounters I might have.

quote:

Originally posted by p dog shooter:

quote:

Liniger ran inside to get his gun

Why did he leave the house the 2nd time without it in the first place. Sounds like he had plenty of time to get it as the bear "circled the house"

Bear in my yard the first thing I grab is a loaded firearm. Bear in my yard chasing the dog would be a dead bear really soon.

What no keys to start the vehicle and run it over.

Seems to me these folks and I sort of live in similar areas or towns and like you, I find some of their responses odd.

I keep a large rifle just inside the front door of the house specifically to protect the dog from bears. Never had a problem, never seen an actual live bear here at home, (just evidence of,) never the less, Babe is so mild she's nearly defenseless, so its up to me in my opinion.

The keys are always in my auto. In the ignition, easy to find. At the store, at the Post Office, at church, at home, the keys are in the ignition, just like every other car in Dillingham. The wife and fellow could simply drive away either from or with the bear on the hood since that's where the keys always are.

I keep a handgun in the auto for the same reason I keep the loaded rifle in the house, to protect Babe! I'd of been beyond irked at a bear on the hood of my car seriously goofing up the body work and do think I'd of shot it dead with only the glass between the two of us. I do have two sets of safety glasses in the car on the dash board so I may even have the where with all to put them on first before shooting thru glass at close range!

I'm certainly sorry for their tragic ending, it seems like they might have been able to do things differently and had a different outcome.

Or maybe the guy really didn't like his wife.