STANWOOD – A self-described survivalist who was jailed last month for allegedly shooting a neighbor in the face in a dispute about looking at deer was charged Friday with first-degree assault.
Russell Carl Hoff, 49, of Stanwood, was being held on $250,000 bail in connection with the Snohomish County Superior Court charge.
Hoff was arrested Oct. 14, the day after the shooting, when a Snohomish County sheriff’s SWAT team descended on his rural home in the 29700 block of 46th Drive NW. Police said they found him hiding there.
According to court documents, the shooting happened after the victim’s brother complained about a confrontation with Hoff on Oct. 12. The brother had been looking at some deer on the narrow road in front of the Hoff residence, Helene Blume, deputy prosecutor, said in charging papers.
The victim and his extended family live at the end of the road. Hoff lives at the entrance to the road, she said.
Blume said the brother had been looking at deer when Hoff became angry that someone would be “on his property”.
The next day, the victim went to see Hoff about the confrontation, Blume said. He drove home in his truck bleeding and told his wife that Hoff had shot him, Blume added.
The wounded man remains at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle. Because of his wounds and surgeries, he still hasn’t been able to tell deputies what happened, Blume said.
The shot entered just under the victim’s nose and came out the back of his neck, Blume said. The man will have to undergo more surgeries, she added.
Police confiscated a shotgun, live shotgun shells, a spent .25-caliber casing and other items, Blume said.
Hoff asked for a lawyer and didn’t say much to detectives, Blume said. However, he told officers he was a survivalist and owned a shotgun, she said in court papers.
Reporter Jim Haley: 425-339-3447 or jhaley@heraldnet.com
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