Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

Affidavits back Cheney's account of shooting
Houston Comical ^ | Feb. 22, 2006, 5:41PM | MARK BABINECK and TERRI LANGFORD

Posted on 02/22/2006 4:50:16 PM PST by The_Victor

Eyewitness statements about Vice President Dick Cheney's accidental shooting of his quail hunting partner largely confirm previous accounts with some minor discrepancies, according to affidavits obtained today by the Houston Chronicle.

The affidavits, released by the Kenedy County Sheriff's Department, give the most detailed accounts to date of the events leading up to the Feb. 11 shooting of Republican activist and Austin attorney Harry Whittington.

"Mr. Cheney, not knowing that Harry had made his way into the shooting area, shot at the bird," wrote Michael "Bo" Hubert, the El Campo-based hunting guide. "And at that time is when Harry was shot."

Whittington, Cheney and Pamela Willeford, the U.S. ambassador to Switzerland were all hunting together at the Armstrong Ranch in South Texas when Whittington apparently walked out of the hunting line to search for a downed quail he had shot that Saturday afternoon.

Cheney, unaware that Whittington had moved forward and to the vice president's right, accidentally shot the GOP supporter when the vice president turned his shotgun to track a quail that flushed in front of him.

The incident, which was not made public for 22 hours, prompted criticism over the handling of the information involving the vice president, who went on television four days after the shooting to explain what had happened. The first news of the accident came when ranch owner Katharine Armstrong contacted the Corpus Christi Caller-Times on Sunday.

In affidavits obtained today, a clearer picture emerged about what was seen by  Armstrong and her sister Sarita Armstrong Hixon, both owners of the ranch, and those in the hunting party. Both women along with Willeford, Hubert, and two Armstrong Ranch employees, filed statements about that day.

According to Willeford, the hunting party came upon two coveys of quail.

She wrote that Whittington shot two quail in that first covey. He picked up one bird and began searching for the second.

"He stopped to pick up his birds and spent several minutes looking, as the second bird was difficult to find," Willeford wrote on Feb. 15, four days after the incident.

Willeford and Cheney walked ahead of Whittington. A bird then flushed in front of the vice president and "flew to our right," Willeford wrote.

Both the ambassador and the vice president took aim but Willeford did not shoot because she said the bird was out of her range.

"Neither the vice president nor I realized he (Whittington) had left his former position behind us and was now about 30 yards to the right (west) and slightly below us," she wrote.

"I did not hear him (Whittington) call out to warn the shooters of his approach," Hixon wrote.

Their statements match earlier accounts of the incident.

However, there seems to be varying recollections of whether Cheney's target quail appeared in front of or behind the hunters.

Willeford said there was "no alcohol consumed during the afternoon of the hunt in the field." However, she said she did consume a glass of wine at lunch, about 4-4 1/2 hours earlier.

A week ago, Cheney said he had a beer at that same lunch.

Last week, Kenedy County Sheriff Ramon Salinas III ruled the shooting an accident.

Whittington, 78, was released from a Corpus Christi hospital on Friday. He was rushed to a hospital after received up to 200 tiny shotgun pellets in the right torso, neck and face. One pellet lodged at his heart, causing a mild heart attack on Feb. 14, three days after the shooting.


TOPICS: Extended News; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: cheney; harrywhittington
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021-37 next last
Funny how this story has been dropped like dead raccoon.
1 posted on 02/22/2006 4:50:18 PM PST by The_Victor
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | View Replies]

To: The_Victor

Let's bring this story back, anything other than this stupid port story.


2 posted on 02/22/2006 4:50:55 PM PST by Darkwolf377 (Dubai-u's fault--The Port Non-Issue is Hillary's Sistah Soulja moment)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Darkwolf377

Isn't Newsweek's cover devoted to this story again this week ?


3 posted on 02/22/2006 4:52:32 PM PST by Eric in the Ozarks (BTUs are my Beat.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: Eric in the Ozarks

Yeah, I'll bet they're wishing the port story broke a little earlier.


4 posted on 02/22/2006 4:53:50 PM PST by Darkwolf377 (Dubai-u's fault--The Port Non-Issue is Hillary's Sistah Soulja moment)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 3 | View Replies]

To: The_Victor

They will say that the people testifying are lying.


5 posted on 02/22/2006 4:56:34 PM PST by BunnySlippers
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Darkwolf377

:0)


6 posted on 02/22/2006 4:57:16 PM PST by snugs (An English Cheney Chick - BIG TIME)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: The_Victor

MINOR DISCREPANCIES!! HOLD THE NY TIMES FRONT PAGE!!!


7 posted on 02/22/2006 4:57:30 PM PST by thoughtomator (I understand Democrats' impatience; If Kerry were President, Iran would have nuked Israel by now)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: thoughtomator

No they only deal with major disrepancies.


8 posted on 02/22/2006 4:58:44 PM PST by snugs (An English Cheney Chick - BIG TIME)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 7 | View Replies]

To: snugs
Where did the c go "discrepancies"
9 posted on 02/22/2006 4:59:25 PM PST by snugs (An English Cheney Chick - BIG TIME)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 8 | View Replies]

To: The_Victor

Dick Cheney shot somebody? Gee, you'd think there would be some mention in the press about it.


10 posted on 02/22/2006 5:03:31 PM PST by GreenHornet
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: thoughtomator

< MINOR DISCREPANCIES!! HOLD THE NY TIMES FRONT PAGE!!! >

It might be held forever if a post above you is true.


11 posted on 02/22/2006 5:05:24 PM PST by GOP_Proud (Jack Bauer wears Dick Cheney jammies.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 7 | View Replies]

To: GOP_Proud

Eerily, I posted that just before the NY Times building on fire post appeared...


12 posted on 02/22/2006 5:06:13 PM PST by thoughtomator (I understand Democrats' impatience; If Kerry were President, Iran would have nuked Israel by now)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 11 | View Replies]

To: The_Victor
The incident, which was not made public for 22 hours

He was shot around 6:50PM and was in a abulance to the hospital at 7:20PM.

Meaning it was made public within 20 minutes at the most.

13 posted on 02/22/2006 5:13:40 PM PST by Psycho_Bunny
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Psycho_Bunny
The incident, which was not made public for 22 hours

Correction: The incident, which was not made public spoon fed to the Washington press corps for 22 hours....

There, that's better.

14 posted on 02/22/2006 5:16:11 PM PST by The_Victor (If all I want is a warm feeling, I should just wet my pants.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 13 | View Replies]

To: Darkwolf377

That's the funny thing. It happened a over a week ago. The Cheney story just soaked up David Gregory's oxygen.


15 posted on 02/22/2006 5:17:41 PM PST by Eric in the Ozarks (BTUs are my Beat.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 4 | View Replies]

To: Eric in the Ozarks
The Cheney story just soaked up David Gregory's oxygen.

Oxygen he can do without, but hairspray? Fergit it!

16 posted on 02/22/2006 5:20:10 PM PST by Darkwolf377 (Dubai-u's fault--The Port Non-Issue is Hillary's Sistah Soulja moment)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 15 | View Replies]

To: Darkwolf377

David seemed to be gasping on the Sunday morning news show he was on to give his apologia...


17 posted on 02/22/2006 5:21:53 PM PST by Eric in the Ozarks (BTUs are my Beat.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 16 | View Replies]

To: Eric in the Ozarks

I thought they were gonna have to get the jaws of life to pry that apology out of him. The way he made it seem like he was making some grand statement was just silly. You were a jerk, admit it, and don't BUTMONKEY.


18 posted on 02/22/2006 5:27:44 PM PST by Darkwolf377 (Dubai-u's fault--The Port Non-Issue is Hillary's Sistah Soulja moment)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 17 | View Replies]

To: Darkwolf377

Jaws of Life. Luv it.


19 posted on 02/22/2006 5:46:07 PM PST by Eric in the Ozarks (BTUs are my Beat.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 18 | View Replies]

To: snugs; thoughtomator

New word: disrepancies == disreputable discrepancies.


20 posted on 02/22/2006 5:47:57 PM PST by Erasmus (One fine day, sad to say, we'll all be Democrat voters.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 9 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021-37 next last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson