Mother dies days after driving her toddler son to hospital while both wounded by gunfire in Minneapolis
A woman has died days after she drove herself and her toddler son to the hospital when both were severely wounded by gunfire, officials said.
Lilian M. Polacin Perez, 35, of Minneapolis, died Wednesday morning, the Hennepin County Medical Examiner's Office said. Polacin Perez was being treated at HCMC after she and her 2-year-old were shot Sunday night while in a vehicle in an alley in the 2900 block of S. 18th Avenue.
She drove herself and her son about 1¼ miles to Children's Minnesota-Minneapolis while both were suffering from "potentially life-threatening gunshot wounds," a police statement read. Polacin Perez was later transferred to HCMC.
There have been no arrests announced, and police have yet to address a motive for the shooting.
"I am so sick of this!!" Lisa Clemons a retired Minneapolis police sergeant who is now an anti-violence activist, posted on social media after she learned of Polacin Perez's death. "He's another child going to be raised without a mother, and a lot of these cases kids being raised without a father because they have lost their lives to this violence with guns.
"This mom was a SHERO in my book. Being critically injured, she was able to drive her baby to the hospital."
In a statement shortly after the mother and her son were shot, Police Chief Brian O'Hara called the shooting of a child "absolutely horrific. It is outrageous. I am most thankful that it appears this child will survive."
In a follow-up statement late Wednesday morning, O'Hara said, "I am deeply saddened to learn that the mother of this child has lost her life in such a senseless act of violence. This incident is a tragic reminder of how gun violence can — and is — tearing apart families in our community."
Polacin Perez's brother-in-law, Jamie Chachipanta, told the Star Tribune that the boy is named Suriel, and "I think he is going to be OK. That is what the doctors said." Police said the boy was shot in the face.
Police said officers responded to a ShotSpotter activation that indicated four rounds were fired and arrived to find evidence of gunfire in the alley. Police are investigating the circumstances leading up to the shooting and trying to determine whether or not the gunfire was specifically meant for the victims.
There have been 23 homicides in Minneapolis this year, according to a Star Tribune database. That compares with 24 at this time last year.
Police are encouraging anyone with information about the shooting to call CrimeStoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).
