Inset: James Lehman (Racine County Sheriff's Office). Background: News footage of the Honey Creek Wildlife Area in Burlington, Wis. (WITI).
A Wisconsin sheriff's deputy allegedly shot one of his colleagues during a hunting trip, as well as the colleague's young son.
James Lehman, 35, was charged with two counts of reckless injury with a deadly weapon and two counts of injury by negligent use of a weapon in connection with a hunting incident at Honey Creek Wildlife Area in Burlington, Wisconsin. According to a criminal complaint obtained by local Fox affiliate WITI, Lehman brought his 3-year-old daughter to a youth turkey hunt on April 12. When he "saw what he thought was a turkey head," he allegedly let the little girl pull the trigger of his semiautomatic 12-gauge shotgun.
Lehman, an off-duty deputy with the Racine County Sheriff's Office, allegedly hit a 40-year-old colleague and his 7-year-old son.
According to reporting on the complaint by local NBC affiliate WTMJ, both victims were taken to the hospital after being hit by several pellets. The 40-year-old man was hit in the back, lower part of his torso, and his left arm. He was released from the hospital that night, but his son remained hospitalized after suffering injuries to his head and spinal cord.
Police said that on June 5, the boy underwent surgery but doctors could not remove pellets from his skull, brain, and spine.
Lehman's colleague spoke to police after he was released from the hospital the day of the shooting and said he had warned Lehman "not to hunt on his hunting spots." The man told police that he and his son were dressed in camouflage colors and using a turkey call. He said he suspected that Lehman mistook his hand, which was holding the turkey call, for a turkey's head based on the timing of the alleged shot.
When police spoke to Lehman, he reportedly admitted that he was "not a very experienced turkey hunter," and this outing was "one of his first times out hunting independently." Police noted that Lehman did not have a hunter safety certificate because his previous military training made him exempt.
WTMJ reported that in Wisconsin, people who do not complete a hunter education course are allowed to hunt as long as they are within arm's reach of someone who did or someone with a valid hunting license. Under the state's hunting mentorship programs, that includes children hunting with licensed hunters or hunters who have completed the education course.
WITI reported that Walworth County District Attorney Zeke Wiedenfeld was assisting in the investigation after the Racine County district attorney handed off the case due to the defendant and victim being employees at the Racine County Sheriff's Office. The sheriff's office told WTMJ that it was conducting its own internal investigation into the case.
Lehman was placed on administrative leave and is due in court on Sept. 10.
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