NewsCrime & Missing Persons

Sweet Home, Oregon Man, 54, Fatally Shot Near His Home as Deputies Search for Hunter

Linn County investigators believe the fatal shot came from a hunter in the Springer Road area Saturday evening. The person responsible has not yet been publicly identified.

Danielle Denham
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After Shooting

A 54-year-old Sweet Home man is dead following a shooting Saturday evening, October 10, 2026, and investigators are asking for the public’s help locating a hunter they believe fired the fatal shot.

The victim has been identified as Robert Alan Church, 54, of Sweet Home. According to information released by the Linn County Sheriff’s Office and reported by KVAL, authorities received a 911 call around 5:48 p.m. reporting a shooting at a residence in the 24000 block of Springer Road, outside Sweet Home. Deputies and Sweet Home Fire Department paramedics attempted to save Church, but he died at the scene.

Map showing the general area of Springer Road near Upper Calapooia Drive, southeast of Sweet Home, where a fatal shooting was reported October 10, 2026. The exact location has not been independently confirmed.

Investigators believe Church was struck by a bullet fired by someone hunting in the area. According to the Sheriff’s Office, the hunter partially field dressed a deer before leaving the location with the animal. Authorities are now working to identify that person and determine exactly what happened.

The Sheriff’s Office is particularly interested in speaking with anyone who traveled Springer Road Saturday evening, including those who entered from Upper Calapooia Drive or Childers Drive near Brush Creek Road. Investigators are seeking information about parked vehicles, gunshots, anyone transporting a deer, and possible trail camera or surveillance footage.

The shooting has prompted discussion among Sweet Home residents, including circulation of screenshots appearing to show preliminary emergency dispatch information. However, those early reports do not establish the circumstances of the shooting, and several important questions remain unanswered.

Authorities have not publicly identified the hunter, explained whether that person knew someone had been struck, or released a final determination regarding the circumstances of Church’s death.

The investigation remains ongoing. Anyone with relevant information is encouraged to contact Detective Derek Klein at (541) 967-3950, Linn County Sheriff’s Office.

This is a developing story. That Oregon Life will update this report as additional verified information becomes available.

Sources: KVAL News, October 11, 2026 | KOIN 6 News

Written By Danielle Denham

Danielle Denham is a writer, photographer, and devoted history buff with a soft spot for Oregon’s forgotten places. Her love of old schoolhouses, abandoned homesteads, and the lives once lived inside them has taken her down back roads across the state. She was featured on OPB’s Oregon Field Guide, exploring the historic Charles Nelson House with a former resident shortly before the home was lost to wildfire. Watch the feature. At That Oregon Life, Danielle shares local history, good food, memorable adventures, and the quirks that make Oregon home. When she isn’t exploring, you may find her spending time in Eugene with Tyler James and his two awesome kiddos. If there’s an old building with a mysterious past along the way, consider the afternoon’s plans officially derailed.

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