Open Season

An SKS rifle was used in the Wisconsin Deer Stand shootings. Another article here. Originally Russian-designed w/ Chinese and Yugoslavian variants, it's 10-round, semi-automatic rifle, predecessor to the AK-47 (used by the Viet Cong during the Vietnam War). The news report linked says the rifle had a 20-round magazine, which seems a little excessive for deer hunting.

[shooter] apparently got lost, asked for directions and later wandered onto a 400-acre parcel of private land where "he found an empty deer stand and crawled up and occupied it." Hunters often build platforms called stands from which they watch for deer to appear within shooting range.

The St. Paul Pioneer Press reported on Monday that Hmong hunters have complained about being harassed by other hunters in the past, and Minnesota has assigned Hmong officers to ease the situation. There may be a culture gap between other hunters and the Hmong, who were accustomed in Laos to hunt wherever they wanted instead of seeking permission to go on private property, the newspaper said.