(Salem) – The Fulton County Sheriff’s Office is investigating an accidental shooting that took place last week.

Sheriff Albert Roork says deputies were called to a home on the northeast side of Cherokee Village just after 5 pm Friday, May 12. The caller told deputies that he had accidentally shot his son, identified as 32-year-old Michael Harston Jr. of Springdale, AR, on the back porch of their hunting cabin.


Deputies and emergency responders arrived at the location and found Harston Jr. already deceased.

His father reportedly told deputies that he had been target practicing with his rifle from the back porch when the family dog came out of the house. Both he and Harston Jr. reportedly attempted to retrieve the dog, and the gun discharged as both men bent down to pick up the dog.

The body was sent to the Arkansas State Crime Lab for an autopsy. The shooting is being investigated by the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office and the Arkansas State Police.