He said in a news conference on Tuesday that the shooting happened on March 3 when Deisha was pumping small gas and he saw police vehicles and heard a siren. His son Legend was in the back seat of the vehicle. Smalls said a man then jumped into his vehicle and asked him to give him a car.
“I will not give him my car because I informed him that I have a child in my car and I will not leave my car without my son,” Small said in tears. Smalls said he was sitting in the car when the man jumped and police were behind him.
“Before I knew it they were already shooting at my car and I was scared for my son’s life,” Smalls said.
The 30-year-old man in question was suspected of two felony robberies during which police jumped out of a crashed car and chased him. The suspect – who was armed with a gun – then entered Smalls’ car.
The man refused to give up his weapon, officers fired several shots at him and he died on the spot. Finner said the baby boy was also shot.
Finner said he wasn’t sure officers at the scene knew the baby was in the car, but they gave the baby and suspected first aid.
The officer who fired the shots that hit the child is a 15-year-old Pte of HPD and is “worried about the child” and his mother. He has been placed on administrative duty while the investigation continues, Finer said.
Legend has been on the ventilator for 10 days, said Small’s attorney Ben Krump. Smalls said the bullet was removed from the right side of his skull from his son’s head, but he still has bullet fragments in his head.
There have also been more than 10 attacks in the legend, Kramp said.
“Knowing they were in the car, why would they shoot? I don’t know who else was in the car. There may have been children, there may have been others in the car, but they fired,” Kramp said. “Sadly, the little legend lives the rest of his life with the result of his decision to shoot in his uncle’s car, even though they knew she was there.”
“The point is that there are innocent people in the line of fire, and we know you don’t shoot until you know,” said Attorney Antonio Romanusi, representing Small.
Houston police and the Houston mayor’s office have reached out to CNN to comment.
“My child doesn’t deserve this, it’s not fair to shoot my child, especially not by the police,” Smalls said. Said Smalls. “I just want my baby to be safe. I just want my baby to be healthy.”
CNN’s K Jones contributed to this report.
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