Tonight, we begin with a teenager who's in the hospital ICU fighting for his life.
15-year-old Kassman Gill was headed to a friend's house yesterday afternoon when he was targeted on Magazine Road. A gunman rode up to Gill, took aim, and fired the shots that landed the SJC student in the hospital. Now, he's hanging on by a thread for dear life. And if he survives, he may be paralysed.
And the Gill family is still in shock since Kassman was not in any gangs. On the contrary, they say he was an introvert and a homely boy, dedicated to his studies. So why did a gunman decide to make an attempt on his life? That's what the family is asking tonight.
Courtney Menzies spoke with Kassman's father and has this story.
A teenager's life is hanging by a thread after he was a victim in a gang war he had no part in. 15-year-old, third form student, Kassman Gill left his house on Logwood Street probably - one of his rare outings since lockdown began last year. Not even five minutes after, he was shot by a gunman on a bicycle on Magazine Road.
His father wanted to make it clear that his son was a student and not a gang banger.
Cecil Gill, Father
"My son, Kassman Gill, has no kind of affiliation with any gang. He is not a gang member, he has never been one, and he'll never be one. He's a 15-year-old third form student at St John's College. Now my son cannot tell you how the neighbor's yard look, because he don't come out of his house. Yesterday, he was invited by one of his classmates to a party and we usually check it out first before we would send him anywhere. We gave him the permission because he's been on lockdown for over a year and they need to get out so we allowed him to go. My son is an innocent victim of what's going on in the city right now."
And now this high schooler is fighting for his life inside the hospital, but even if he recovers, his life will never be the same.
Cecil Gill, Father
"He has spinal injuries and the doctor say if he survive, he won't be able to walk. We have to deal with that for the rest o f his life and our life. this is what they put us in, these cowards. This is what they put us in."
"It was two gunshot that we know of. One to the back of the head and one in the shoulder here. And the bullet travelled and puncture the lungs and the spine in two different spots."
And the hardest part for this family is watching the intelligent young man they knew helpless on a hospital bed.
Cecil Gill, Father
"It is the most difficult thing because I left him at home healthy and strong. Get a call and pull the curtain in the hospital and see him with all his tubes in him. It's devastating. It's devastating to my entire family, he has a younger sister and an older sister and they can't deal with it. The mother can't deal with it. So I have to be the strong one to carry my family through."
Their only hope now is that Kassman can live to see the dream he was working towards.
Cecil Gill, Father
"His desire and what he wants to do is to be a lawyer. That's what he wants, that's the last thing that he told me when we talk, I said what do you want to do, he said law. So hopefully maybe we still see that."
It's notable that Gill lived on Logwood, which is a short walk from where he was shot. It is also a short walk from the Bank Street area which is a hive of intense gang activity at this time.
