Two Charged in Connection with Game Warden Shooting

COOPER (AP/STAFF) � Two men have been charged in connection with the shooting of a Texas Parks and Wildlife game warden. Parks and Wildlife spokesman Mike Cox says Eli Stephens, 18, and Dalton Haddix, 21, both said to be from Illinois, were taken into custody Tuesday and booked into the Delta County jail in Cooper. Stephens is charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, and Haddix failure to report a felony. Cox says off-duty Game Warden Chris Fried was bow hunting in the Cooper Wildlife Management Area when he was shot around 6:00 Sunday evening. Investigators say Fried was looking to see if someone might be hunting illegally when he was struck by a bullet from a high-powered rifle. Cox says the 31-year-old Fried remains in stable condition at Dallas’ Parkland Hospital.