Hunter mistakes woman for deer in Delaware, charged with manslaughter

A 74-year-old Maryland hunter shot and killed a 39-year-old woman in Ellendale, Delaware, allegedly mistaking her for a deer. Walter Moorhead faces felony manslaughter charges.

Delaware hunter shoots and kills woman he allegedly mistook for deer

A 74-year-old hunter has been charged with manslaughter after fatally shooting a woman near Ellendale, Delaware, on Friday evening, according to abc7news.com. The victim, identified as 39-year-old Santos Maria Chilel Soto of Georgetown, Delaware, was struck by a rifle shot around 7:40 p.m. while walking through a field with a man and two children.

Walter Moorhead of Salisbury, Maryland, was hunting deer from a ground blind when he allegedly fired the shot. "Moorhead believed he saw a deer and fired his rifle, striking the victim," the Delaware State Police said in a statement.

State troopers responded to the scene and provided emergency medical care, but Chilel Soto was later pronounced dead at a hospital. Following a preliminary investigation that determined Moorhead had fired the shot, troopers took him into custody.

In addition to felony manslaughter, Moorhead faces three counts of first-degree reckless endangerment and one count of possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, state police said. He was arraigned by the Justice of the Peace Court and released after posting a $43,000 cash bond.

Moorhead did not return a call from ABC News seeking comment, and it was unclear whether he had retained an attorney.

The Delaware State Police said the investigation remains ongoing and asked anyone with information to contact its homicide unit.

Source: Google News GY — Georgetown