‘He’s very lucky’: 9-year-old grazed by stray bullet on way to beach, father says

CLEVELAND (WOIO/Gray News) - A 9-year-old boy was injured after a stray bullet went through his father’s car over the weekend.

Cleveland police said officers in the Fifth District heard shots being fired around 3:30 p.m. Saturday in a verbal altercation involving a group of people at an area McDonald’s.

The boy’s father, Brad Packer, said he and his son were sitting in their car at a nearby red light when the rear window was shattered, with a bullet suddenly going through one of the car door handles.

“We happened to be at that red light. We heard the screaming and the three teenagers took their hoodies off,” Packer said.

According to Packer, he and his son were on their way to Euclid Beach when the shooting occurred and he had to pull into a gas station for help.

“The glass was broken. It was all over him,” the father said. “He had a red spot on his chest.”

Packer described the wound as about the size of a quarter and said the bullet came through the side of the car.

“The way he said, ‘I’m OK,’ I knew something was not right,” Packer said.

The boy’s father called 911, but said no officers came to the gas station. So, he flagged down an officer who was at the scene of the shooting.

Throughout the chaos, Packer said his son kept telling him he was OK.

“He was much calmer than I was,” the father said. “Joseph is a very brave young man.”

The boy’s father said his son was taken to the hospital for treatment and is healing well since the shooting, with his spirits remaining high.

“He’s kind of acting as if it’s just another day,” Packer said. “He’s very lucky he just got grazed on his chest.”

Cleveland police said a 17-year-old was injured in the initial shooting and is expected to survive. Authorities did not immediately say if any arrests were made or what started the altercation.