An accidental shot of love
Throughout Montana and the surrounding areas, negligent gun use and accident shootings are a growing cause of serious injury and unnecessary death.
AN ACCIDENTAL SHOT OF LOVE LICENSE
Persons born before 1985 are not even required to undergo hunter’s safety before obtaining a hunting license in Montana. Unfortunately, not everyone who has a gun in Montana is trained to safely use it. Montana has one of the highest gun ownership rates in the United States. His awards include the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal and National Defense Service Medal.Wrongful Death Involving Guns & Shootings Call (406) 233-1302 for Representation in Your Wrongful Death Case in Montana He joined 2nd Radio Battalion in 2013, served as a Special Intelligence System Communicator and was promoted his current rank on Oct. He was temporarily assigned to Headquarters and Support Battalion, Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune as a Marine sentry.īoterf joined the Marine Corps in August 2012. "Now that it's here in the present, it's the hardest thing in my life to live without him," he said.Īccording to the Department of Defense, Mark Boterf was assigned to 2nd Radio Battalion, II Marine Expeditionary Force Headquarters Group aboard Camp Lejeune. That's when you've got to stay strong."Īnd now it's left to Mike Boterf to go on without his brother, his twin, his fellow Marine. It's hard to think that God has a plan for that. It's hard to think that it was his time to go. You live this life as a Christian, you know your days are numbered. I've gotta let them know that I love them and care for them. I've never had to deal with this before," he said. I definitely pray a lot more, and I talk to my mom more. Now that he's gone, Mike finds his own now-deepening faith a source of solace. Mark Boterf was a man of faith, his brother said. They don't know what to expect and neither does he," Mike Boterf said. "Keep the other guy in your prayers as well. Other guards were at the gate, but no one else was hurt. It occurred inside the guard shack at the gate, which is about 15-feet by 15-feet and sits under a canopy. Officials told reporters it appears the shooting was an accidental discharge. It was serving that assignment as a gate sentry that Mark Boterf suffered a single gunshot wound to the chest. "He basically decided to take six months out of his career to help that guy." a time when you get the most training during your enlistment," Mike said. "It's paramount that people understand he was putting himself at a disadvantage to take six months or more during. It has been widely reported that Mark Boterf was serving orders voluntarily for a friend who had gone to get married, but Mike Boterf said it was a six-month assignment that he took in order to allow his friend to get married. "One of his instructors contacted me and couldn't stop talking about how he just thought my brother was going to change the marine corps one day." He made it his mission to make everyone else around him enjoy life more and be happier," Mike Boterf said of his brother.
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Not just to his country, but to his family, his friends, and his fellow Marines. When we joined the Marines, he didn't care that he was going to risk his life, it was something he was devoted to."ĭevotion was something Mark Boterf was all about, Mike said. We thought we were bulletproof, we lived on the edge, if there was something that was dangerous, I was going to do it and he was going to lead the way. We took a 50-passenger van and put it on two wheels in the parking lot," Mike Boterf said.
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The twin 21-year-old Marines from a family of 10 children were once Tupelo High School students. "But I never actually thought I'd see the day I'd have to bury him."Įven though they knew it was possible one or both of them could lose their lives in the line of duty. We knew we were joining in a time of war," Mike Boterf said.
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The war was in full swing when we were growing up. God made some men to be the ones who fight the battles, and we wanted to be those men, to devote our lives to our country. "We made up our minds that whatever happened, happened, and if it did, we'd see each other on the other side," Mike Boterf said of his brother, who was killed in what officials say was an accident on Tuesday at Camp Lejeune. Twins Mike and Mark Boterf knew when they decided to go into the Marines together during wartime that they might not come out of it together.