Shooting victim stable, expected to recover
 
May 8, 2004
 
By Times staff writer (unidentified)
 
The St. Petersburg Times

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The 22-year-old who was accidentally shot in the chest during a training exercise at the law enforcement firing range/training area near the central landfill in Lecanto on Thursday is expected to recover, authorities said.

Eric C. Verhille was flown by helicopter to Tampa General Hospital, where he was listed in stable condition and underwent surgery Thursday.

Verhille, a Marine from Maine who is stationed in North Carolina, was in Citrus County doing freelance work as an instructor for a North Carolina-based private training company. The company had been contracted by Withlacoochee Technical Institute, which runs the range off State Road 44. http://www.wtionline.cc/

A dozen Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officers in the Special Operations Group had been training at the range Thursday.

Verhille had been photographing a training session involving live ammunition when the incident occurred.

http://www.sptimes.com/2004/05/08/Citrus/Shooting_victim_stabl.shtml

Another article, same topic:
 
Marine recovering from gunshot wound at training exercise
 
May 7, 2004
 
The Associated Press
 
 
Lecanto, Florida - A 22-year-old Marine was recovering Friday from a gunshot wound suffered during a training exercise at a law enforcement firing range.

Eric C. Verhille of North Carolina was taken to Tampa General Hospital following Thursday's incident, but hospital officials Friday said they could not confirm he was being treated there, citing federal medical privacy guidelines.

Citrus County Sheriff's officials were investigating the incident as an accident.

Sheriff's spokeswoman Gail Tierney said a dozen officers from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission's Special Operations Group were training on Thursday at the range, which the Withlacoochee Technical Institute operates.

She said the officers were participating in a "building clearance'' exercise. In an open-air "house,'' a group of four officers with long guns and handguns entered and cleared the first room, then entered a second room. Weapons were drawn and a shot was fired.

The Marine, whose rank was unavailable, was working as an instructor. He was standing on a stack of tires between the two rooms, photographing the session for training purposes, Tierney said.

"We're not really sure at this point if it was a direct hit or a ricochet,'' she said. Florida Department of Law Enforcement investigators were also investigating.

The Fish and Wildlife officer who is believed to have fired the shot was put on administrative leave. A sheriff's spokeswoman said Friday that officer is not being publicly identified until investigators determine he actually fired the shot.