A 14-year-old Chattanooga boy who was shot four times in a drive-by shooting Sunday evening is in good condition after being released from the hospital, his family said Monday.
The boy, who is not being named because he is a juvenile, was with his family inside a home on Seventh Avenue when bullets tore through the house. He was not the intended target of the shooting, his family said.
However, another juvenile visiting the home at the time was the subject of the attack, witnesses said, although they said they had no idea that people were looking to harm him until police began to question him after the shooting. He was questioned by police Sunday and taken into custody.
A woman talks on a phone following an afternoon shooting in the 3100 block of 7th Avenue on Sunday, Aug. 23, 2015, in Chattanooga that left a 14-year-old boy with gunshot wounds to his arm, leg and chest."I am glad that my son is OK," said the mother of the victim, who asked not to be named to protect her son's identity. "It is sad that we live in this type of environment and that my son fell victim to other people's decision not to value life. God was in my home and protected my family because this could have easily been a tragedy. My whole household and other people's children's lives were in jeopardy."
She said she is praying for the young men involved in the shooting and for all the young men growing up in her community.
"I pray they change their lives," she said. "I pray this wakes them up."
Police are investigating leads but have not yet made an arrest in the case.