KEY POINTS:
A man who shot dead his daughter's boyfriend during a hunting trip has escaped going to jail, but says he will never fire a gun again.
Garth Porter, 53, had enjoyed hunting trips with his mates for the past 35 years. But all that changed on March 15 this year when he accidentally killed his daughter Nicole's boyfriend, Aron Timms, while shooting near Tarawera.
Porter pleaded guilty to carelessly using a firearm causing death and was sentenced yesterday at Napier District Court to five months' home detention and 250 hours' community service.
His wife Lyn said she and the family had been preparing for the worst. Speaking to the Herald from their Napier home, she said Porter had made preparations in case he was jailed yesterday.
"He'd got some things in order to do with his business and to make sure we were all right. He's relieved he's not going to jail but none of this brings Aron back which is what we all want.
"His coping mechanism is to throw himself into his work. You don't ever forget what happened but he's tried to get through for Nicole," she said.
In a statement, Porter said he had been overwhelmed by guilt, sadness and remorse and would live with the shooting for the rest of his life.
He considered Mr Timms a "good friend" and "hunting buddy", loved him like a son and was struggling with his grief each day.
Judge Bridget Macintosh ordered him to undergo any counselling necessary during his home detention as an extra condition of his sentence.
Mrs Porter said her husband would have to cope with not being able to work at his contracting company but that was minor compared to what the Timms family were having to endure.
"He has to take it ... that's part of him being held accountable."
When asked what the past four months had been like she replied: "Think of something bad and then multiply it by 100."
Her voice cracking with emotion, she said her husband was a "nice guy" and all that she could do after the sentencing was to cuddle him.
Porter's lawyer Tony Snell said he was a former volunteer fire officer who was also heavily involved with search and rescue. "He was a man who could be called upon by the community," he said.
Mr Timms' mother declined to comment on the sentencing.
Garth Porter, Mr Timms and another man had left their camp in the ranges near Tarawera just before 7am on March 15, 2008. They each carried a gun and all wore dark clothing.
After about 300m they were parallel to each other, a hunting method called sidling.
Not long after splitting up, Porter heard a noise and raised his gun. Scoping the area he thought he saw a deer's antlers and, after initially pausing, fired a shot.
Twenty-one metres away Mr Timms had walked six metres off the track and leaned up against a cabbage tree.
Porter's bullet struck the cabbage tree before splitting into two pieces that penetrated Mr Timms' heart and lungs, killing him in less than a minute.
Porter and the other man found Mr Timms' body and Porter called emergency services. He told police immediately that he'd failed to properly identify his target.
