October 22, 2018
From HeraldOnline.com
A man was shot in the back by his brother in York County Sunday in what South Carolina wildlife officials called an accident.
The victim, 53, was shot with a deer hunting rifle by his brother, 49.
It happened around 3:45 p.m. at a private land hunt club, off Simpson Road near McConnells, said First Sgt. Jason Plemmons of the S.C. Department of Natural Resources.
The identities of the injured man and the shooter have not been released.
No charges will be filed because the shooting was a “freak accident,” Plemmions said.
“The round went through the door of the truck first, and the door probably saved his life,” Plemmons said. “The bullet fragmented after it went through the door.”
The brother who fired the shot was taking the rifle out of a gun case as two prepared to go hunting when he shut the bolt on the rifle and it went off, Plemmons said.
The bullet went through the door of the truck first and then hit the victim in the back, Plemmons said.
The victim was airlifted to a Charlotte hospital, but was later discharged and is expected to make a full recovery, Plemmons said.
The accidental shooting of a hunter by another hunter is the second in York County since hunting season opened last month.
A 15-year-old boy shot a 49-year-old man in September on the first day of dove season, police said.