Lyme Hunter Injured By Shotgun Pellets Fired By Hampstead Man While Pheasant Hunting, Fish And Game Says

CANAAN, NH — The New Hampshire Fish and Game Department is investigating a hunter injured by another hunter’s shotgun pellets during a pheasant hunt on Wednesday morning.

Around 9:45 a.m., conservation officers were notified about a man who was shot in Canaan during a group hunt along a river with patches of thick vegetation. The party, according to Conservation Officer James Cyrs III, “unknowingly partially encircled an area of dense cover in an attempt to harvest a pheasant that was hiding in the thicket.” After the pheasant emerged and took to the air, James McCarthy, 38, of Hampstead, fired a single shot, he said.

Multiple pellets, Cyrs said, “continued past the flying pheasant and struck another hunter in the party.” The group immediately converged on Joshua Perrone, 37, of Lyme, and provided aid while calling 911. He was taken to Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon for treatment of non-life-threatening wounds.

Cyrs said Canaan Ambulance, the Canaan and Enfield police departments, and New Hampshire State Police responded, along with conservation officers. No charges have been filed in the case.

“The incident is currently under investigation and no further details are available at this time,” he said.

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