STARKS — A grand jury decided against pressing charges in the case of a Starks man shot at close-range on his own property in an incident involving a group of hunters in late October.

“At this point in time the jury has found that the evidence we have is not sufficient. There is no probable cause to proceed with criminal charges,” District Attorney Maeghan Maloney said Tuesday.

According to police, Kerry Hebert, then 56, was shot in the stomach on Oct. 31 by a man among a group of hunters at the end of a dirt road leading to the home he shares with his wife and two children. The shooting followed a confrontation about hunting too close to the house in Starks.

In the almost eight months since the incident, no one was arrested and the names of the hunters were not released.

The case was heard by a grand jury of 23 people on June 6 and they were presented with the testimony of several witnesses, said Maloney.

“Because this was such a serious incident the decision to press criminal charges was not one that just a prosecutor could make,” Maloney said.

She said that at least 13 of 23 grand jury members are required to give their approval in order for charges to be made.

The case will remain open under the statute of limitations in the chance that more evidence might be brought up, said Maloney.

Rachel Ohm —  612-2368
rohm@mainetoday.com

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