It's been one month since a deadly shooting took place in the District of Rock Island. That morning one man died and 5 others were injured, including 22-year-old Darien Ramsdale. His mother, Wendy Ramsdale, says he's paralyzed from the chest down but he's suffered more than that since the shooting.
"When he went to the District I kept saying to him "Don't go down there you'll get COVID"," Wendy recalls. "Didn't say you're going to be shot in the neck and be paralyzed."
Police say Ramsdale was randomly shot by Dewaun Anthony Berry, age 42, who has been arrested since.
"His friend Ian said "I heard something like a ricochet" and I turned around and Darien was on the ground," says Wendy who hasn't seen her son since he was shot.
Darien was taken to a hospital in Peoria and has had surgeries since, but he's also contracted MRSA and COVID-19 over the past month. The family says Darien can shrug his shoulders, but it's still a question if he'll be able to walk.
"You hear all those miracle stories and he said the other day that he thought he felt tingling in his fingers," Wendy says. "At this point we just have to go day by day."
Wendy's husband is the only visitor able to see Darien due to COVID-19 restrictions at the hospital. But the family has been video chatting and sending "get well" videos to keep Darien's spirits up.
Darien has a diaphragm tracing surgery, that same one Christopher Reeve has, next week. Once he is released from Peoria he will go to a rehabilitation center in Chicago for physical therapy.