Cheney shooting victim has heart attack

THE 78-year-old lawyer who was shot by US Vice President Dick Cheney had a minor heart attack yesterday.

Peter Banko, the hospital administrator at Christus Spohn Hospital Corpus Christi-Memorial, said Harry Whittington had some bird shot lodged in his heart and suffered the heart attack while being evaluated.

He said there was an irregularity in the heartbeat caused by a bird shot pellet and doctors performed a cardiac catheterisation.

Mr Whittington expressed a desire to leave the hospital, but Mr Banko said he would probably stay for another week.

Mr Whittington, a prominent Republican attorney from Austin, Texas, was accidentally sprayed with shotgun pellets when Mr Cheney was aiming for a quail on Saturday.

Mr Whittington had initially been placed in intensive care. He had been moved to a “step-down unit” after doctors decided to leave several shot pellets lodged in his skin rather than try to remove them.

Hunting safety experts agree it would have been a good idea for Mr Whittington to have announced himself as he approached Mr Cheney, which he apparently did not do, according to a witness. Under the rules of hunting, however, the shooter is responsible for knowing his surroundings and avoiding hitting others.

A Texas Parks and Wildlife Department report said Mr Whittington was retrieving a downed bird and stepped out of the hunting line he was sharing with Mr Cheney.

“Another covey was flushed and Cheney swung on a bird and fired, striking Whittington in the face, neck and chest at approximately 30 yards,” the report said.