A Lehighton man who accidentally shot his hunting companion earlier this year waived his right to a preliminary hearing on Tuesday.

Raymond C., Mayers, 27, of North Second Street, was scheduled for a hearing before District Judge James Ferrier, but instead elected to wait to have his case heard in Schuylkill County Court.Mayers and a friend, Kimberly Kokinda of Lansford, were reportedly poaching on Roads End Road, West Penn Township, on the night of Jan. 4. Kokinda was driving the vehicle, while Mayer was in the back seat, armed with a .22-caliber rifle. Mayer saw a deer in a field and decided to shoot it.As he was swinging the rifle into position, it discharged, traveling through the back of the seat where Kokinda was sitting. The bullet hit the woman in the back.Kokinda was airlifted to St. Luke's University Hospital-Bethlehem Campus, where she underwent surgery. She is recuperating, but remains paralyzed from the waist down.Charges against Mayer were filed by Wildlife Conservation Officer Kenneth Clouser of the Pennsylvania Game Commission's Southeast Region. The charges include reckless endangerment, shooting at/causing injury to a human being while hunting, unlawful presence of loaded firearm in vehicle and unlawful use of artificial light.Mayers remains free on $5,000 unsecured bail.