There seem to be unanswered questions here.
Most obviously, you would clear a gun by firing it into a backstop, not firing it into the air. Sure, that would be unlikely to hit anything in the country, but you still shouldn’t take the chance.
Second, is it possible for a muzzle loader to shoot more than a mile? It seems unlikely, but I don’t know for sure.
Third, have they done ballistic checks? Does the bullet match the muzzle loader?
Finally, we only have this guy’s word for where he fired from. I should think that, if the ballistics match, they should check that out, too. Did he fire it from where he said he fired it? Might he have fired it from somewhere closer? Does the wound, and its angle, suggest a spent bullet?
I found myself wondering if a jilted teenage “suitor” had been riding along...got out...shot her...and walked away.
The suspicious mind does wander...
=8-|
“Second, is it possible for a muzzle loader to shoot more than a mile? It seems unlikely, but I don’t know for sure.”
It does indeed. With ball, about 1450 yards at 1370 Feet per second, possibly more as I had to estimate the Ballistic coefficient,I used .10). With 440 grain bullet, 2800 yards at 950 feet per second.
Having shot muzzle loading rifles for years the numbers seem to me to be correct.
1873 - .45-70 70 grains black powder, 405 grain bullet....3500 yards, accurately.
Black powder rifles are more capable than most people think.