The case of a man accused of accidentally shooting his nephew will be heard by a Cayuga County grand jury.

Michael Hall Sr., 49, of 1306 Salt Road, Moravia, opted not to enter a guilty plea during a hearing Thursday at Cayuga County Court to a felony charge of criminally negligent homicide. The case was adjourned and will be sent to the grand jury, which will decide whether to indict him on the charge.

Authorities accused Hall of shooting Ricky Huffman, 33, Nov. 16, 2007, during a hunting accident. Huffman died from the injury. According to the Cayuga County Sheriff's office, Hall allegedly thought Huffman was a deer and fired a 12-gauge shotgun, hitting him in the abdomen.

Authorities said the two were hunting on family property a day before deer season.

District Attorney Jon Budelmann said a date has not been set to convene the grand jury, but he expects it to take place in February.

For more from Cayuga County's court calendar, read Friday's edition of The Citizen.