FORT WORTH, Texas — A Fort Worth councilman's 82-year-old mother was shot through a door of her home on Thursday night.
The Fort Worth Police Department (FWPD) said officers were dispatched to the 1400 block of Circle Park Boulevard for a shooting call.
Officers located the victim, identified as Graciela Flores, who told police an unknown man approached the rear door of the home. Flores is the mother of District 2's councilmember, Carlos Flores.
According to police, Graciela Flores said she thought the person might be a relative, called out that relative's name and then heard a gunshot through the door. She told police she felt a sudden pain in her abdomen, saw blood and realized she had been shot.
The suspect ran away on foot, police said.
In a statement from Carlos Flores, he said his mother was hit by a stray bullet fired from the backyard of a nearby property.
Graciela Flores is in stable condition with family resting and recovering now, Carlos Flores said in his statement.
Rosenda Mercado, a neighbor who lives one street away, told WFAA she heard several gunshots as she was getting ready for work.
“It was really loud. We heard like more than five gunshots. I was really scared. I just grabbed my son and moved toward the center of the house,” Mercado said. "I don't feel safe anymore."
Police records showed that 35-year-old Jonathan Howard was arrested Feb. 24 and charged with unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon. It’s unclear whether Howard might face additional charges in the case.
Mercado and several other neighbors told WFAA they’ve seen the suspect in the neighborhood before, and that he frequently visited a home located behind Ms. Flores's house, one block away.
"I never thought that he was gonna do that," Mercado siad.
Councilmember Flores thanked law enforcement in his statement:
"I won’t allow this bad act to obscure all of the good in this community. Our family was hurt by gun violence and the bad choices of an irresponsible individual, but my family and I are deeply grateful for our Police, Fire, MedStar and the Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital staff," Carlos Flores said. "In the words of my mother, ‘you stood by us and we stand by you.’ We appreciate the Fort Worth community’s prayers for her recovery and the continued investigation."
The Gun Violence Unit was requested to assist in investigating the shooting.
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