Police are investigating this season’s first hunting accident.

Life Star took a 51-year-old East Berlin man to Hartford Hospital Friday morning after his stepson shot him with a 12-gauge shotgun in the lower left leg.

Police said they believe his stepson accidentally shot him.

John Peterson was deer hunting with his stepson and a friend in the private woods off Beckley Road in Berlin, witnesses said.

He was brought back from the woods on an ATV. Officials said that the accident happened nearly a half mile into the woods. They are investigating to determine whether the men were even supposed to be there.

"We're looking into making sure they had permission to be on the property and had the proper permits to be hunting today, and all the related issues," Capt. Raul Camejo of the Department of Environmental Protection said.

The shotgun-rifle deer-hunting season in Connecticut opened Wednesday and will run through Dec. 4.

Peterson is in serious condition. His injuries, however, don't appear to be life threatening.

Crews from East Berlin, Berlin and South Kensington fire departments assisted Berlin police.