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Maryland Hunting Fatality

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A 74-year-old Maryland hunter was arrested and charged with manslaughter after fatally shooting a Delaware woman he mistook for a deer while she walked through a field with two children on Friday evening in Ellendale. The victim was a mother of five; emergency responders provided care but she was pronounced dead at a hospital.

12
2 reported locations
Geography of the reported facts
  1. Ellendale, Delaware, United States
  2. Delaware, United States

The story so far

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2026-09-22 to 2026-11-03 · UTC publication dates

3documented facts ↓1related articles ↓

Coverage begins 22 Sept, 08:26 UTC

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What happened

The facts

  1. Maryland hunter fatally shoots Delaware woman in field mistaken for deer

    Walter Moorhead, 74, a Maryland hunter, shot Santos Maria Chilel Soto, 39, while she was walking through an open field in Ellendale, Delaware with a man and two children at approximately 7:40 p.m. on Friday evening. Moorhead was hunting deer from a ground blind when he believed he spotted a deer and fired his rifle, striking Soto. State troopers provided emergency medical treatment at the scene, but Soto was pronounced dead at a nearby hospital.

    1 corroborating report

  2. Shooting victim identified as mother of five children from Guatemala

    Santos Maria Chilel Soto, 39, was identified as a mother of five children and a beloved aunt. A GoFundMe fundraiser was created to help her family with funeral arrangements and to transport her body to Guatemala. The fundraiser had raised approximately $12,000 by Monday evening.

    1 corroborating report

  3. Maryland hunter arrested and charged with manslaughter in hunting incident death

    Walter Moorhead was arrested and charged with multiple felony offenses including manslaughter for recklessly causing Soto's death, possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, and three counts of first-degree reckless endangerment. He was released from custody after posting a $43,000 cash bond.

    1 corroborating report

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