Police: Father released from hospital after shooting on I-240, 2 children still in critical condition

David Royer and Ashley Paul

43 minutes ago

Deputy Chief of Police, Don Crowe

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The father of four young children who were seriously injured after a drive-by shooting two days ago has been released from the hospital, Deputy Police Chief Don Crowe said Thursday.

Two of the four children were “on the verge” of being released from the hospital, Crowe said. Two other children still suffer very serious injuries. Crowe said they were in “critical but stable” condition.

“The community needs to pray for healing and help these families,” Crowe said.

Crowe said several MPD detectives remain in contact with the victims' family on a daily basis.

Two 3-year-old twins, a 2-year-old and an 8-year-old, and their 30-year-old father were taken to the hospital with serious injuries after the shooting on Interstate 240 near Poplar during Tuesday's rush after -noon. hour.

One of the children was shot five times, another twice in the stomach and another lost two fingers.

Two good Samaritans stopped to help the father carry his children to their car and took the family to a nearby hospital. A citizen provided police with a description of the suspect vehicle and a license plate number, allowing police to track it.

According to a police report, the shooting began when the victim's car merged onto I-240 but was blocked by an SUV. The occupants of the SUV reportedly pulled up alongside the car and opened fire with a rifle.

Two men, Kendrick Ray, 21, and Lorenzo Watson, 18, are charged with six counts of attempted first-degree murder and numerous other counts. They were held Thursday on $1 million bail.