Hunter

In his new thriller, "The Third Bullet," novelist Stephen Hunter sets his sights on an American tragedy that's also the most famous gun mystery of all time - the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. The questions surrounding the shooting as JFK rode in a motorcade in Dallas on Nov. 22, 1963, have never been fully put to rest. And the controversy is certain to intensify as the 50th anniversary of the assassination approaches this fall. As the novelist tells it, the decision to enlist his fictitious super-sniper, Bob Lee Swagger, to determine whether the gunman acted alone or as part of a conspiracy began as a joke.

The school shooting in Newtown, Conn., once again highlights the need for such sensible gun control measures as restoring the ban on assault rifles and eliminating the gun show loophole for background checks ("What must be done," Dec. 26). The key factor that distinguishes the U.S. from other countries that have far lower murder rates is not mental health or video games but the availability of guns. Beyond those steps, however, it's time to repeal the Second Amendment. The amendment states, "A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.

Lauren Hunter, a fifth grade reading specialist at William Paca/Old Post Elementary School in Abingdon, is the latest Harford County educator to receive a prestigious National Milken Award. Hunter did not know she had won the $25,000 cash award from the Milken Family Foundation until she attended a surprise assembly at the school early Wednesday morning. Before students, fellow faculty members, staff and elected officials, she accepted the award from Dr. Lillian M. Lowery, Maryland State Superintendent of Schools.

Rick Wilson didn't know what to expect that September morning as he pulled to the side of the road 15 years ago. All he saw was a woman by her car and she looked in need of help. The woman asked Wilson if he could follow her into the bushes. Warily he did, eventually coming upon a dead six-point buck in the brush. Soon Wilson realized the woman wanted help getting the road kill into the trunk of her car. Wilson, a veteran hunter, warned her of the potential citations she could receive if caught carrying an untagged deer.

The first week of the state's two-week firearm season for hunting deers has produced fewer deer taken and at least one hunter seriously injured. According to Brian Eyler, Deer Project Leader for the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, colder than normal temperatures and windy conditions, as well an abundance of acorns, led to a 10 percent drop in the number of deer taken compared to last year. There were 15,829 whitetails taken compared to 17,613 last year. Of the whitetails taken, 6,759 were antlered and 9,070 were without antlers.

About 10 a.m. Saturday, hunters in a remote wooded area of Allegany County in Western Maryland came across a gruesome and bizarre scene. A man's body, dressed in underwear, jeans and brown boots, was decomposing on the ground, with what appeared to be only internal injuries. A hooded sweatshirt was tied between two trees nearby, about 28 feet above the ground. The hunters called police, and a team of crime scene technicians responded and secured the scene, near Oldtown and the West Virginia line.

With an increase in the number of permits given out and a record number of bears killed during last month's five-day Maryland black bear hunt came another high mark - arrests made for illegal baiting and other violations. According to the Natural Resources Police, 22 hunters were arrested. While it represented more than five times the number of hunters arrested last year (four) and double the number from 2010, it is only 2.5 percent of the number of hunters who were either issued permits or had sub-permits.

Maryland's annual bear hunt will begin Oct. 22 with more hunters and the highest quota of bears allowed killed since the hunt was reinstituted after a 50-year hiatus in 2004. According to Harry Spiker, the bear biologist who runs the hunt for the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, 340 hunters have been issued tags with a quota set between 80 and 100 bears. After setting a quota of between 55 and 80 bears last year, a total of 72 were killed. The number of hunters has increased from 260 in 2011.

Faced with the task of adding four starting pitchers to the American League Division Series roster that were excluded from the one-game wild-card team, Orioles manager Buck Showalter decided to go with Tommy Hunter's experience in the postseason and as a reliever over three other young pitchers who were available to play Friday in Texas. To fill out the ALDS roster, the Orioles added Jason Hammel , Wei-Yin Chen , Miguel Gonzalez and Chris Tillman while removing infielder Omar Quintanilla and a trio of pitchers who were key for the club at different points this season: Steve Johnson , Jake Arrieta and Zach Britton . The exclusion of Johnson, who is 4-0 with a 2.11 ERA but hasn't pitched since Sept.

Craig R. Unruh, an advertising executive and avid waterfowl hunter, died Sept. 14 of colon cancer at Gilchrist Hospice in Towson. He was 61. Mr. Unruh was born in Baltimore and raised on Tunbridge Road in Homeland. He was a 1969 graduate of St. Paul's School, where he had been an outstanding midfielder on the lacrosse team and a key player in the 1969 state championship game. As a student at the University of Maryland, he was a starting midfielder his freshman year, and after earning a bachelor's degree in 1973, continued playing the sport for the University, Chesapeake and Carling lacrosse clubs.