MEMPHIS, Tenn. — A 9-month-old boy is still fighting for his life in the hospital after he was injured and his father was killed after they were shot at Oak Court Mall on November 20.
”I told my husband to come to get me from work and I told my son to go see was that his brother, and by the time I got up there it was my son and my grandson,” recalled the shooting victim’s mother, Jayson Hill.
It was a heartbreaking moment for Forman as two of the most important people in her life were shot in the parking lot while going Christmas shopping.
She spoke to her son shortly before she got the news Hill and son, Jaylen, had been shot.
Jayson was rushed to Regional One, where he died.
“He started working two jobs, he wanted to be the best father that he could be," she said.
During the shooting, Jaylen was shot five times, in the neck, hand, thigh cheek, and foot.
“All we can do is just take it day by day and just pray he heals and everything pulls through,” said Forman. “He’s not showing any sign that he’s not going to pull through.”
She said there’s a long road ahead, where Jaylen will spend his first Christmas in the hospital.
Forman said the relationship between Jayson and Jaylen is unbreakable.
“They had a real special bond,” she said. “He knew who his daddy was, he started saying “daddy” he even started calling him jay. So when he sees his picture now he lights up, or hear his voice, he knows his daddy's voice.”
The grandmother is now thinking ahead to her grandson’s life without his dad.
“It just hurts me that he’s not going to feel the love that his daddy had for him. He’s only going to hear about it.”
Jaylen is expected to be released around June from the hospital.
Meanwhile, police are looking for a woman who is a person of interest in the homicide case. She was seen driving a silver car, possibly a Chevy Malibu.
If you have any information on the shooting, call 901-528-CASH.
