Police officer accused of shooting hunter after whiskey shots during Pa. goose hunt

A Berks County police officer faces criminal charges for accidentally shooting a fellow hunter while hunting Canada goose last fall, according to authorities and multiple published reports.

David Qawasmy, 30, of Chester Springs, Pennsylvania, faces misdemeanor counts of shooting and causing injury to a human and reckless endangerment.

Witnesses, including the victim, told investigators that Qawasmy was among members of the group hunting who had been drinking alcohol just prior to the incident last November, according to court records.

Qawasmy is scheduled March 26 to appear for a formal arraignment at the Berks County Court of Common Pleas. He is free on bail after posting a bond signature in the amount of zero dollars, according to court records.

The shooting came up during a meeting Tuesday morning of the Pennsylvania House Game & Fisheries Committee in Harrisburg. State Rep. David Maloney Sr., the committee’s Republican chairman from Berks, pressed Pennsylvania Game Commission Executive Director Stephen Smith on whether Qawasmy could face a lifetime hunting ban in the “extremely serious” incident.

“There’s law that gives you, as a Game Commission, a certain leeway to take care of that,” Maloney told Smith. “So these are the questions I’m getting. And my colleagues need to know that this is out there. People don’t want this man to be a police officer ever again, and they want him to go to jail.”

Smith said he couldn’t comment on the potential for a lifetime license revocation since the criminal matter is still open.

The incident occurred the year after Pennsylvania saw the fewest number of hunting-related shooting incidents since 1915. Of the 13 incidents in 2023, one was fatal, according to the Game Commission.

Qawasmy’s private attorney listed in court records, Timothy Woodward, couldn’t immediately be reached for comment Tuesday.

The incident occurred the morning of Nov. 23, authorities say. A game warden from the Game Commission Southeast Regional Office responded for a waterfowl hunter who was shot on private property in the 1900 block of Memorial Highway in Berks County’s Oley Township.

Emergency responders took the victim to Reading Hospital after he suffered a gunshot wound to the head. The victim underwent brain surgery and was listed in critical condition, court records say; he remained in intensive care for several days.

The shooter, identified as Qawasmy, reported to the warden he was hunting Canada geese from an A-frame hunting blind, investigators wrote in their affidavit of probable cause to file charges. The document lays out evidence and witness testimony against a defendant.

Qawasmy reported he and the victim were in the same blind with two other hunters; he was on the opposite side and they were about six feet apart, court records state.

Qawasmy reported in court records after the group had shot at a flock of geese, he noticed a goose flying around the left side of the blind toward the rear. He allegedly shouted “rear” and shot at the bird from his position on the far right side.

When he fired, Qawasmy reported hitting the victim on the top of the head, causing him to fall to the floor, court records state.

A witness on Nov. 27 reported to investigators that on the day of the incident, just prior to the shooting, Qawasmy and several others in the hunting party had been consuming alcohol, according to court records.

The victim on Dec. 17 was able to be interviewed at a rehabilitation facility by investigators. He reported not being able to walk due to the gunshot wound, according to court records.

The victim recalled shooting at geese on Nov. 23. He kneeled over in the blind to grab shotgun shells from his bag to reload his shotgun and when he went to stand back up, he felt something strike his head, court records state.

The victim reported several members of the hunting party, including Qawasmy, consumed shots of whiskey the morning of the incident, court records state.

The victim reportedly told investigators the drinking made him feel uncomfortable and he thought about leaving the hunt. He was unsure how much alcohol Qawasmy allegedly consumed.

Qawasmy declined further interviews with investigators after consulting with Woodward, according to court records.

Multiple published reports, including by the Reading Eagle, indicate Qawasmy in January 2023 was sworn in as a newly hired patrolman in Exeter Township, Berks County.

According to December 2024 Exeter Township Board of Supervisors meeting minutes, Qawasmy was listed as in need of uniforms.

It’s unclear if Qawasmy remains on duty. WFMZ-69 News reports he is on leave from the department.

Exeter police Lt. Sean Fullerton, the department’s public information officer, didn’t immediately return a request for more information, nor did police Chief Matthew Harley or township Manager William Heim.

None of the Exeter Township Board of Supervisors — Chairman Mohammad Mohammad; Vice Chairman John “Jack” Piho; Clarence Hamm; Michelle P. Kircher; and George Bell — immediately responded to a request for comment.

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Pamela Sroka-Holzmann may be reached at pholzmann@lehighvalleylive.com.

Kurt Bresswein may be reached at kbresswein@lehighvalleylive.com.