By ROBERT IMRIE
Associated Press Writer

WAUSAU, Wis. (AP) -- One out of three hunters who shot someone while deer hunting was a teen-ager or younger, and carelessness contributed to nearly half of the 255 hunting accidents in Wisconsin over the last nine years, an Associated Press review found.

Twenty-seven people died in those accidents -- including a 2-year-old boy struck by a stray bullet as he played in his home. Of those wounded, 164 required hospitalization; another 64 suffered minor injuries, the AP's computer-assisted analysis of hunting accident reports shows.

Carelessness in handling guns -- from resting a loaded gun on a hunter's foot to hauling one up a tree with a rope -- accounted for 43 percent of all accidents reviewed.

One-third of the known shooters -- 83 -- were younger than 19. Of that group, 36 were younger than 15.

One boy blew a hole in his chest when he dropped his gun on a rainy day.

``A half an inch either way and I would have been dead,'' said 15-year-old Travis Bayer of Neenah. ``Now I understand the power of it. I could have taken more precautions, but you don't think about those things.''

In a state in which hunting is almost a rite of manhood, some experts contend the accidents suggest more safety training should be required to keep that rite from being so deadly. Currently, the only requirement is that hunters born after Jan. 1, 1973, take a single, minimum 10-hour safety course.

``We need a basic course for adults, a basic course for students and an advanced course for both. I am working on that. But we all know the wheels of government turn slowly,'' said Tim Lawhern, hunting education administrator for the Department of Natural Resources.

Sixty-nine of those shot in the mishaps were 19 or younger, seven of whom died, the analysis showed. Of those wounded, six -- aged 6 to 15 -- were hurt although they carried no guns, weren't licensed to hunt and simply tagged along with other hunters.

The AP conducted the review by entering details of accident reports for the past nine years in a computer data base, and using software to analyze trends.

Just last season, the review showed, three young hunters involved in shooting mishaps had not graduated from the mandated safety class.

Deer hunting in Wisconsin is steeped with tradition, with 650,000 hunters taking to the fields on opening weekend.

Pressure from that tradition, combined with lack of judgment and experience, causes most accidents by young hunters, said T.J. Edwards, a 20-year DNR warden in Spooner.

``Up here, you are a failure as a man if you don't get a deer. It is the most bogus thing,'' he said.

Younger hunters have been required since 1985 to graduate from the safety courses, but Lawhern emphasizes those classes, taught by volunteers, are only the ``first step in the right direction.''

In Wisconsin, one must be 12 to get a deer license. Those born after Jan. 1, 1973, are also required to present proof of graduation from one of the safety courses, which are taught by volunteers.

The sellers of the licenses, sometimes mom and pop stores, are responsible for checking that certification. But as is evidenced by the three cases last year, some young hunters slip by.

Hunting in Wisconsin is safer than it was nearly a century ago. The DNR reports there were 47 deaths among 20,000 hunters in 1908.

``You are more likely to get killed driving to a baseball game than going deer hunting,'' Edwards said.

But some experts say the state can and should do better.

``Frankly, I am amazed we don't have more (shootings),'' said Tom Heberlein, a professor of rural sociology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and expert on sport hunting and related social issues.

He advocates a two-tiered system -- the basic training for young hunters and species-specific training for all hunters.

Bruce Taylor of East Farmington, a one-time volunteer hunting safety instructor whose son in 1992 accidentally killed his best friend, believes all hunters should be routinely tested.

``You see adults out there who are much more irresponsible than kids -- drinking and hunting, shooting from the road. For youth, some of the things that lead to the accidents they see by example and they start getting lax,'' Taylor said.

On Nov. 24, 1992, his 18-year-old son, Christopher, shot Zachary Ward, 16, in the head while firing at a deer. Both had graduated from a hunter safety course.

Ward had climbed down from their stand to go for a walk because his feet were cold. Unbeknownst to Taylor, he ended up in a cornfield they had been warned stay out of.

Investigators believe the younger boy was going after the same deer Taylor spotted. The fatal mistake? Getting separated, they speculate.

Christopher Taylor was killed in a car accident two years later.

The AP review found only seven accidents where investigators noted alcohol use and that is surprising, said Lawhern. ``One would expect much larger numbers.''

Careless handling of guns accounted for 109 of the 255 accidents.

In 1990, James Luedke, 13, of Cambria had his right arm blown off when a gun his 15-year-old brother had on his shoulder fired while the pair were searching for a downed deer.

James hadn't yet taken a hunter safety course and blames himself for the accident, saying he was ``young and stupid. I knew I shouldn't have been there. When you are out hunting, don't stand in front of the gun.''