Shooting victim stabilized, Lawton police say

The condition of an 8-year-old boy wounded in a Sunday night shooting has stabilized, according to Lawton police.

The boy was taken to a local hospital and later transferred to OU Children’s Hospital in Oklahoma City where he was admitted in critical condition.

Sgt. Christopher Blessing, Lawton Police information officer, said Tuesday morning the boy’s condition has stabilized.

Elias Fernando Canez said the boy, his nephew, is on a ventilator with feeding tube. Canez said medical personnel are trying to not put any more pressure on his head where he was shot.

Canez’s mother also was shot during the exchange, he said.

Police were called around 8 p.m. Sunday to 910 SW 35th and found the boy suffering from a gunshot wound. After the boy was taken to the hospital for treatment, the 900 block of Southwest 35th Street was closed to traffic for investigation and evidence collection.

Blessing declined to offer further information as the investigation is ongoing.

Canez told The Constitution that police have told him, at this point, “it was a random shooting.” He said his sister-in-law was making a DoorDash delivery when the gunfire began. Four tires and the back window of her car were shot, he said.

“She had just dropped off the dash, got in the car and asked the boys if they had seen the lights on one of the houses,” he said. “They said ‘no’ then she backed up, seen a green laser and shots fired.”

Police are asking those who live in the area to check their security footage to see if it captured anything pertaining to the incident. Information about the crime may be reported to Lawton Police Department at (580) 581-2372 or CrimeStoppers of Southwest Oklahoma at (580) 355-4636.