The Dick Cheney hunting incident occurred on February 11, 2006, when then U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney shot Harry Whittington, a 78-year-old Texas attorney, while participating in a quail hunt on a ranch in Kenedy County, Texas. Both Cheney and Whittington call the incident an accident.
First public news of the incident was called in to the Corpus Christi Caller-Times on February 12, 2006, by ranch owner Katharine Armstrong. The Bush administration disclosed the shooting incident to the public the afternoon of February 12. Local authorities released a report on the shooting on February 16, 2006 and witness statements on February 22.
On February 14, 2006, Whittington suffered a non-fatal "silent" heart attack and atrial fibrillation due to at least one lead-shot pellet lodged in or near his heart. Cheney did not speak publicly about the incident until February 15 in an interview with Fox News.
Shooting incident
Day of shooting
The shooting was widely reported to have taken place on Saturday February 11, 2006, based on the public statements of Katharine Armstrong, owner of the 50,000-acre (200 km 2 ) Armstrong Ranch. However, in her written statement to the Sheriff, she said that the shooting happened on February 12.
Harry Whittington, in his only public statement, said that "accidents do and will happen – and that’s what happened last Friday" (February 10). Whittington has not made another statement or issued a written statement about the shooting.
Time of shooting
Mary Matalin stated on Meet the Press that "Somebody had talked to some ranch hand". Neither the Sheriff's report nor witness statements identify who this first reporter was.
The Secret Service is reported to have said they gave notice to the Sheriff about one hour after the shooting. Kennedy County Sheriff Ramone Salinas III states he first heard of the shooting at about 1730 hours from Captain Charles Kirk, and Salinas implies that he received 'official' notice from the Secret Service at about 1740 hours.
The time of the shooting was not stated by Cheney. The other members of the hunting party put the time variously between 1730 hours and 1800 hours.
Cheney states that Whittington was standing on low ground and that the sun was directly behind Whittington.
The events
Cheney had a televised interview about the shooting on February 15. On February 22, the Sheriff's office released statements from Katherine Armstrong, Sarita Armstrong, Williford, Oscar Medellin, Gerado Medellin and Andrew Hubert. Cheney’s statement and all six of the other hunting party members' statements specify that:
- Cheney, Whittington and Williford had first shot birds together in a covey
- While Whittington was searching for a downed bird, Cheney, Williford and an 'Outrider' (Guide) walked towards another covey about 100 yards (100 m) away
- Whittington approached to within 30 or 40 yards (40 m) of the shooters
- A single bird flew up, around and behind Cheney in the direction of Whittington
- Cheney shot at the bird and hit Whittington
- The shooting occurred somewhere around 1730 hours and 1830 hours.
Armstrong, the ranch owner, claimed that all in the hunting party were wearing blaze-orange safety gear and none had been drinking, and that at lunch they drank beer, which contradicts her later statement that "there may (have been) a beer or two in there , but remember not everyone in the party was shooting." Cheney has acknowledged that he had one beer four or five hours prior to the shooting. Armstrong said she never saw Cheney or Wittington drink until later at the house, when Cheney had a cocktail. Armstrong did not actually see the incident happen, believing that the reason Cheney's security detail was running was that Cheney had a heart problem, although Cheney described her as an eyewitness in his Fox interview.
Secret Service agents and medical aides, who were traveling with Cheney, came to Whittington's assistance and treated his birdshot wounds to his right cheek, neck, and chest. An ambulance standing nearby for the Vice President took Whittington to nearby Kingsville before he was flown by helicopter to Corpus Christi Memorial Hospital in Corpus Christi.
People present
At the scene:
- Dick Cheney (shooter)
- Harry Whittington (victim)
- Pamela Pitzer Willeford (eyewitness)
- Oscar Medellin (outrider, between Cheney and Willeford, flushed the bird)
- "Secret Service personnel" were reported to be with the two shooters and Oscar Medellin
In a car at an unstated distance away from the shooting:
- Katharine Armstrong, owner of the ranch
- Sara Storey Armstrong Hixon, Armstrong’s sister
Texas Parks and Wildlife Department report
On February 13, 2006, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (an agency once headed by Armstrong) issued an incident report. According to the report, the shooter (Cheney) "was swinging on game," that is to say, turning to track it with his gun. The summary of the incident given was:
"Whittington downed a bird and went to retrieve it. While he was out of the hunting line, another covey was flushed and Cheney swung on a bird and fired, striking Whittington in the face, neck and chest."
The report cited clear and sunny weather at the time of the shooting.
Whittington injury
Whittington was injured in the face, neck, and upper torso. Whittington was reported to be in stable condition at Corpus Christi Memorial Hospital and had been moved from intensive care to a "step-down unit" on Monday. Doctors had decided to leave up to 200 pieces of birdshot pellets lodged in his body rather than try to remove them. Each pellet is less than a tenth of an inch (2.5 mm) in diameter. Because of their small size, it is hard to pinpoint the precise location of each pellet with medical imaging.
On February 14, 2006, at 0630 hours, Whittington suffered a minor heart attack and atrial fibrillation due to the shot pellets lodged in or near his heart. He was immediately moved back to the intensive care unit. At about 0900 hours, Whittingon underwent a cardiac catheterization test to detect blocked or leaky arteries. From the test, doctors found a single lead pellet.
Hospital officials said Whittington was alert and stable and that he did not experience chest pain or other symptoms of a heart attack. Doctors reported signs of inflammation, and Whittington was treated with anti-inflammatory drugs.
Whittington was subsequently discharged from the hospital on February 17, 2006. At a press conference he said: "My family and I are deeply sorry for everything Vice President Cheney and his family have had to deal with. We hope that he will continue to come to Texas and seek the relaxation that he deserves."
Information release
Though the shooting occurred on Saturday, February 11, news of it was not released until after 2 PM, eastern Standard Time on Sunday, February 12. Kathryn Garcia, a reporter for the Corpus Christi Caller-Times , broke the story at 1:48 PM after receiving an 11 AM call from Katharine Armstrong, the owner of the ranch where the shooting occurred. Armstrong had notified Cheney earlier in the morning that she was going to inform the news media about the incident. She said Cheney agreed. Armstrong said that Whittington did not announce his location, and this led to the incident.
According to White House Press secretary Scott McClellan, news at the White House about the shooting "... was coming into people back here, all the way at 3 AM in the morning and beyond." McClellan would not state when the President first learned that Cheney had shot Whittington. When McClellan was asked if Andy Card had told Karl Rove that Cheney was the shooter, McClellan said: "... we still didn't have all the details at that point and additional details were coming into Andy Card at even three am in the morning and beyond."
The White House did not disclose the accident until a press conference on Sunday afternoon. Peter Banko McClellan said he did not know that Cheney had shot someone until that Sunday morning. He remarked that he did ask the Vice President's office to release the information earlier. He said: "I think you can always look back at these issues and look at how to do a better job."
On February 15, Cheney agreed to comment publicly about the accident on the Fox News Channel. He had previously avoided reporters by leaving an Oval Office meeting with United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan. Cheney visited Whittington in the hospital on Monday, February 13, and at other times, telephoned him.
On the Fox News interview, Cheney accepted full responsibility for the accident.
Cheney acknowledged that White House Counselor Dan Bartlett and Scott McClellan "urged us to get the story out", but Cheney said he was more concerned about accuracy and felt that Armstrong was the best person to make the announcement.
Investigation
Secret Service spokesman Eric Zahren said that about an hour after Whittington was shot, the head of the Secret Service's local office called the Kenedy County sheriff to report the accident. Kenedy County Sheriff Ramon Salinas III receiving a call of 'official' notice from the Secret Service 8-10 minutes after a Saturday, February 11, 5:30 p.m. phone call from Captain Charles
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