Man shot as 5-year-old son watches

Discussion

Welcome to our online comments feature. To join the discussion, you must first register with Disqus and verify your email address. Once you do, your comments will post automatically. We welcome your thoughts and your opinions, including unpopular ones. We ask only that you keep the conversation civil and clean. We reserve the right to remove comments that are obscene, racist or abusive and statements that are false or unverifiable. Repeat offenders will be blocked. You may flag objectionable comments for review by a moderator.

comments powered by Disqus

September 1, 2010

By Jim Patten jpatten@eagletribune.com The Eagle Tribune Wed Sep 01, 2010, 01:18 AM EDT

LAWRENCE — A man checking a flat tire near his Willow Street home was shot three times as his 5-year-old son watched from inside the car early yesterday, police said.

Police found Antonio Orellana, 36, of 193 Willow St., lying in the road in front of 198 Willow St. about 6:30 a.m., his car running and the rear tire flat. Orellana's 5-year-old son was sitting in the car when the shooting occurred.

The boy told police he and his father were driving their Honda Civic north on Willow Street, but turned around to check the car's tire. The boy said that is when he saw a masked man come running up the street toward him.

The boy said his father said "Hi" to the man in English and the man just shot him and walked away.

Police said a neighbor told them he heard the gunshots, ran to the scene, grabbed the boy out of the car, and brought him to his apartment for safety. Three spent 9 mm shell casings were found at the scene.

Orellana, who celebrated his 36th birthday Monday, was taken to Lawrence General Hospital and was later transferred to a Boston hospital, where police said he was in stable condition with two gunshots to his left side and one to his sternum.

One neighbor told police she heard three or four gunshots and looked out the window to see Orellana on the ground screaming for help, and called police.

"It appears he was the intended target," police Chief John Romero said.

He said it was possible the tire on Orellana's car was flattened in order to be sure he was outside the car and preoccupied with something else.

Robbery was not the motive for the shooting because Orellana's wallet was in his pocket when police found him, Romero said.

Police said he has no history with the Police Department, having just arrived in the city from North Carolina last October.

His wife came to Lawrence last November, police said.

Troopers from the state police crime scene services and ballistics sections worked at the scene and took possession of the spent shell casings and the tank top Orellana was wearing when he was shot.

Lawrence and state police detectives assigned to the district attorney's office are investigating.