American hunter fatally shoots 39-year-old woman in front of children: “I thought she was a deer”

A hunter from Maryland was recently jailed after allegedly fatally shooting a woman. He claimed he fired after mistaking her for a deer.

Walter Moorhead, 74, was hunting from a blind in a field near Ellendale, Delaware, around 7:40 p.m. on Friday, when he believed he saw a deer and fired his rifle. But in fact Moorhead shot and struck a woman as she walked through the field with two children.

State troopers who responded to a report of a woman shot with a firearm gave her first aid. The 39-year-old was then taken to an area hospital for emergency treatment, but was pronounced dead there.

State police added that troopers investigating the case spoke with Moorhead, determined he had fired the weapon that struck the woman, and arrested him. The agency said officers arrested the man for manslaughter, possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime and reckless endangerment.

Delaware law defines manslaughter as negligence causing another person’s death. The state treats manslaughter and firearm possession as Class B crimes punishable by up to 25 years in prison.

Moorhead posted a $43,000 bond to secure his release from custody pending the outcome of the case, Delaware state police said.