Hunting drama in the Cantal, a hilly area in the French Massif Central. A 17-year-old from Aveyron took part in a hunt for wild boar on Saturday around 3 p.m. with a hunting license and a shooting license. The wild boar are considered a plague in the Cantal.
A bullet “strayed”, as the gendarmerie and the public prosecutor’s office later confirmed in a report in the regional newspaper “La Montagne”. The bullet hit a 25-year-old local woman. She was walking with her boyfriend on a signposted hiking trail. Suddenly she collapsed, hit in the left side by the bullet. The young woman succumbed to her injuries at the scene of the accident. Any medical help came too late.
The fatal shot came from the carbine of the 17-year-old hunter from the municipality of Cassaniouze. The teenager was taken into police custody Sunday morning on charges of negligent homicide. She is apparently also being looked after psychologically and had to be taken to a hospital.
Hunting license at 16
The 17-year-old is in severe shock and was initially unable to be questioned, as reported by “Le Monde”. According to a test, she was not under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Now politicians and environmentalists in France are calling for a ban on hunting on weekends and during school holidays.
Political and environmental groups are reporting on social media about the incident. Bérangère Abba (45), Secretary of State for Biodiversity, spoke on Twitter of an “intolerable and unacceptable drama”. She added: “Investigations are ongoing, decisions will follow so that something like this never happens again.”
The young hunter got her hunting license at the age of 16, emphasized Abba. Perhaps it was the accident a “question of experience”. The state secretary also brings up the use of apps that “show where hunts are taking place in the area”.
Thousands of hunting accidents since 2000
“How many people will die before we decide to regulate hunting, a dangerous and inhumane practice?” Green politician David Belliard (43) asked. “At the very least, we should ban hunting on weekends and school holidays, now!”
Marine Le Pen (53), conservative presidential candidate of the National Front, takes a different view. “I believe that hunting is a long-established tradition and must be preserved,” said Le Pen.
France is the country in Europe with the most hunters. Around four million have a hunting license. France is also the only European country where hunting can be practiced every day during the season. In other countries, one or more hunting-free days apply. There have been 3,325 hunting accidents in France since 2000, killing 421 people. (kes)