Hunter shot in tree stand in Indiana Twp.
Saturday, October 13, 2007
By Milan Simonich, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
One hunter shot another in the face in morning darkness, then
fled as the wounded man screamed in pain, a state wildlife officer
said.
The shooting occurred at 7:13 a.m. when an orange-clad hunter
fired his shotgun into a tree in a wooded area of the Indianola
section of Indiana Township. His blast wounded Jason Davies, 18, a
bow hunter from Franklin Park who was perched some 30 feet off the
ground in a stand, waiting for deer.
Mr. Davies was being treated at UPMC Presbyterian Hospital.
Beth Fife, a state wildlife officer, said the shooter fled in a
maroon pickup truck. He remained at large this afternoon.
She said Mr. Davies waved twice to the man with the shotgun,
trying to alert him that a fellow hunter was within range. But
instead of averting a shooting, the movement apparently prompted the
man with the shotgun to fire into the tree. Today is the first day
of squirrel and grouse season.
George Steele, a friend of Mr. Davies, said the shooting may have
been accidental, but he called the actions of the gunman "cowardly."
"You don't run away. The kid could have laid out there and died,"
said Mr. Steele, of Evans City.
