Newton SO looks into father-son shooting
By JIMMY GALVAN

Charges may be pending against a Newton County man as a result of a double shooting which occurred Tuesday morning.

According to Newton County Sheriff Joe Walker, James Hughey Sr., 62, and James Hughey Jr., 31, were both shot during a disturbance at their home in Sabine Sands subdivision.

"We don't know what the cause of the shooting is at this time," Walker said early Tuesday morning. "Mr. Hughey was in real poor health at the time I interviewed him and he couldn't tell me much.

"It was a pretty vicious crime scene," Walker said. "We are now trying to figure out why and who shot the other first."

Hughey Sr. was shot in the left side of his chest with a .35 caliber rifle. The bullet pierced his left lung. Hughey Jr. was shot once in the head with a .22 pistol.

Walker said the bullet impacted Hughey Jr. two inches above his left eye but exited his skull.

"It doesn't appear to me that it caused any injury to his brain," Walker said. "... he was walking around the house and talking to everyone."

Walker said he has a warrant for the arrest of Hughey Jr. in the case for aggravated assault.

"The reason I do is because he kind of blew this off and told me this was an accident," Walker said. "The boy was the one who made the 9-1-1 call and played off like he was the father and then turned around and said we both had been shot." Police reports indicate

that at approximately 3:30 a.m. Tuesday a 9-1-1 call was received from James Hughey Jr. about a shooting at their residence.

Walker said the father told him the shooting occurred near midnight but the phone call to 9-1-1 wasn't made until 3:30 a.m.

"I asked Hughey Sr. why and he said he thought it was just a graze and he was going to be okay," Walker said.

Walker said that Hughey Sr. told him he shot himself but Walker doesn't believe that is the case.

"There is no way feasible that he could have held that rifle and shot himself," Walker said.

Both were airlifted to St. Elizabeth's in Beaumont where they (at last report) were in surgery.