Man Shot by Cheney Has Heart Irregularity
Veep Cited After Blasting Hunting Buddy With Bird Shot
By NEDRA PICKLER, AP
Breaking News: The man shot by Vice President Dick Cheney experienced a heart irregularity after birdshot moved into his heart.
WASHINGTON (Feb. 14) - Vice President Dick Cheney was in violation of the game laws of Texas when he accidentally shot and wounded his hunting companion because his license lacked a required hunting stamp.
Cheney wounded fellow hunter Harry Whittington in the face, neck and chest Saturday, apparently because he didn't see Whittington approach as he fired toward a covey of quail on a southern Texas ranch.
Hunting safety experts interviewed Monday agreed it would have been a good idea for Whittington to have announced himself as he approached Cheney, which he apparently did not do, according to a witness. Under the rules of hunting, however, they stressed that the shooter is responsible for knowing his surroundings and avoiding hitting others.
"We always stress to anybody that before you make any kind of a shot, it's incumbent upon the shooter to assess the situation and make sure it's a safe shot," said Mark Birkhauser, president-elect of the International Hunter Education Association and hunter education coordinator in New Mexico. "Once you squeeze that trigger, you can't bring that shot back."
In Texas, Whittington, 78, remained in Christus Spohn Hospital Corpus Christi-Memorial, where he was taken by helicopter Saturday night, but was moved from intensive care to a "step-down unit" Monday morning. David Blanchard, the hospital's chief of emergency care, said his recovery and spirits have been excellent. He remained listed in stable condition.
Blanchard said, however, that in cases like Whittington's, where the number of bird shot pellets lodged in the skin was "more than I can count on the fingers of my hand, but less than 100," it was better to leave them there than to try to extract them. Millionaire Whittington, he said, most probably will live out his life with the pellets in his body.
The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department said Cheney and Whittington would be given warning citations for violating game law by not having an upland game bird stamp, a requirement that went into effect in September. Cheney had the required $125 nonresident hunting license, the vice president's office said Monday night in a statement, and he has sent a $7 check to the state to cover the cost of the stamp.
Cheney, an experienced hunter, has not commented publicly about the accident. He avoided reporters Monday by leaving a White House meeting with United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan before the press was escorted in.
President George W. Bush's chief political aide, Karl Rove, told Bush about Cheney's involvement in the accident shortly before 8 p.m. Saturday, about an hour after it occurred, but the White House did not disclose the accident until Sunday afternoon, and then only in response to press questions. Press secretary Scott McClellan said he did not know until Sunday morning that the vice president had shot someone.
Facing a press corps upset that news had been withheld, McClellan said, "I think you can always look back at these issues and look at how to do a better job."
Katharine Armstrong, the owner of the ranch where the shooting occurred, said she told Cheney on Sunday morning that she was going to inform the local paper, the Corpus Christi Caller-Times. She said he agreed, and the newspaper reported it on its Web site Sunday afternoon.
Secret Service spokesman Eric Zahren said that about an hour after Cheney shot Whittington, the head of the Secret Service's local office called the Kenedy County sheriff to report the accident. "They made arrangements at the sheriff's request to have deputies come out and interview the vice president the following morning at 8 a.m., and that indeed did happen," Zahren said.
Gilbert San Miguel, chief deputy sheriff for Kenedy County, said the report had not been completed Monday and that it was being handled as a hunting accident.
He said his department's investigation had found that alcohol was not a factor in the shooting, but he would not elaborate how that had been determined. The Texas Parks and Wildlife hunting accident report also said neither Cheney nor Whittington appeared to be under the influence of intoxicants or drugs.
Armstrong said the accident occurred as Whittington was retrieving a bird he had shot in the tall grasses on her property.
Cheney and another hunter, Pamela Willeford, the U.S. ambassador to Switzerland, moved on to another covey of quail - Armstrong estimated it was roughly 100-150 yards away - and Cheney fired on a bird just as Whittington rejoined them. She said Whittington was in tall grass and thick brush about 30 yards away, which made it difficult for Cheney to see him, although both men were wearing bright-orange safety vests.
Veep Cited After Blasting Hunting Buddy With Bird Shot
By NEDRA PICKLER, AP
Breaking News: The man shot by Vice President Dick Cheney experienced a heart irregularity after birdshot moved into his heart.
WASHINGTON (Feb. 14) - Vice President Dick Cheney was in violation of the game laws of Texas when he accidentally shot and wounded his hunting companion because his license lacked a required hunting stamp.
Cheney wounded fellow hunter Harry Whittington in the face, neck and chest Saturday, apparently because he didn't see Whittington approach as he fired toward a covey of quail on a southern Texas ranch.
Hunting safety experts interviewed Monday agreed it would have been a good idea for Whittington to have announced himself as he approached Cheney, which he apparently did not do, according to a witness. Under the rules of hunting, however, they stressed that the shooter is responsible for knowing his surroundings and avoiding hitting others.
"We always stress to anybody that before you make any kind of a shot, it's incumbent upon the shooter to assess the situation and make sure it's a safe shot," said Mark Birkhauser, president-elect of the International Hunter Education Association and hunter education coordinator in New Mexico. "Once you squeeze that trigger, you can't bring that shot back."
In Texas, Whittington, 78, remained in Christus Spohn Hospital Corpus Christi-Memorial, where he was taken by helicopter Saturday night, but was moved from intensive care to a "step-down unit" Monday morning. David Blanchard, the hospital's chief of emergency care, said his recovery and spirits have been excellent. He remained listed in stable condition.
Blanchard said, however, that in cases like Whittington's, where the number of bird shot pellets lodged in the skin was "more than I can count on the fingers of my hand, but less than 100," it was better to leave them there than to try to extract them. Millionaire Whittington, he said, most probably will live out his life with the pellets in his body.
The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department said Cheney and Whittington would be given warning citations for violating game law by not having an upland game bird stamp, a requirement that went into effect in September. Cheney had the required $125 nonresident hunting license, the vice president's office said Monday night in a statement, and he has sent a $7 check to the state to cover the cost of the stamp.
Cheney, an experienced hunter, has not commented publicly about the accident. He avoided reporters Monday by leaving a White House meeting with United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan before the press was escorted in.
President George W. Bush's chief political aide, Karl Rove, told Bush about Cheney's involvement in the accident shortly before 8 p.m. Saturday, about an hour after it occurred, but the White House did not disclose the accident until Sunday afternoon, and then only in response to press questions. Press secretary Scott McClellan said he did not know until Sunday morning that the vice president had shot someone.
Facing a press corps upset that news had been withheld, McClellan said, "I think you can always look back at these issues and look at how to do a better job."
Katharine Armstrong, the owner of the ranch where the shooting occurred, said she told Cheney on Sunday morning that she was going to inform the local paper, the Corpus Christi Caller-Times. She said he agreed, and the newspaper reported it on its Web site Sunday afternoon.
Secret Service spokesman Eric Zahren said that about an hour after Cheney shot Whittington, the head of the Secret Service's local office called the Kenedy County sheriff to report the accident. "They made arrangements at the sheriff's request to have deputies come out and interview the vice president the following morning at 8 a.m., and that indeed did happen," Zahren said.
Gilbert San Miguel, chief deputy sheriff for Kenedy County, said the report had not been completed Monday and that it was being handled as a hunting accident.
He said his department's investigation had found that alcohol was not a factor in the shooting, but he would not elaborate how that had been determined. The Texas Parks and Wildlife hunting accident report also said neither Cheney nor Whittington appeared to be under the influence of intoxicants or drugs.
Armstrong said the accident occurred as Whittington was retrieving a bird he had shot in the tall grasses on her property.
Cheney and another hunter, Pamela Willeford, the U.S. ambassador to Switzerland, moved on to another covey of quail - Armstrong estimated it was roughly 100-150 yards away - and Cheney fired on a bird just as Whittington rejoined them. She said Whittington was in tall grass and thick brush about 30 yards away, which made it difficult for Cheney to see him, although both men were wearing bright-orange safety vests.
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