Man hit by stray bullet in Uptown Dallas recovering from collapsed lung, broken ribs
DALLAS - The innocent bystander shot by a man in Uptown Dallas this week is recovering from a collapsed lung and broken ribs.
Caleb Cox was supposed to be celebrating his marriage with family and friends this week. Instead, he's in the hospital after getting shot in the chest.
Damion Williams is behind bars charged with shooting Cox.
Dallas police say Williams was standing in the middle of McKinney Avenue when he repeatedly fired a handgun at a vehicle overnight Monday.
MORE: Man hit by stray bullet during Uptown Dallas shooting
One of the bullets hit a bystander in the chest. The victim’s family says it was Caleb Cox.
Breathing issues prevented Cox from speaking with FOX 4, but his loved ones did for him, including his aunt, Kami Willyard, who helped raise him following the death of his mother.
"My boy got shot," Willyard said.
Cox was married in May, but he and his bride were holding off on the reception. It was scheduled for this Wednesday.
"We were supposed to be at a celebration right now, and we’re not," Willyard said.
Cox, who was in the Uptown area after getting off work at a local bar, is recovering from a collapsed lung and broken ribs from the stray bullet that hit him. It could’ve been much worse.
"If it was centimeters or if it hit him differently, we wouldn’t be having this conversation," Willyard said.
Police haven’t said what the motive for the shooting was.
Williams is charged with aggravated assault. He has a criminal history, including a conviction for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon in 2019.
Monday’s shooting was captured on cell phone footage. It happened with dozens of people nearby.
Cox’s wife, Jennifer, has been staying with him in the hospital. She says he immediately called her after being shot.
"From the phone call from him, I couldn’t really tell what was going on," she said. "I just understood the general area they were in and that somebody was shot."
Cox posted to Facebook Tuesday saying he’s been brought to tears by the love and support people have shown him since the shooting and that he hopes to be out of the hospital by the end of the week.
"You never know. That one moment," Willyard said. "And as Caleb said on his Facebook, ‘I was just in the wrong place at the wrong time.’"
Still, Cox’s loved ones cannot imagine why someone would open fire in the middle of a busy street.
"There were so many, and I kept thinking Caleb was just laying there," Willyard said.
Dallas police are still not saying what led to the shooting or if the person Williams was targeting has come forward.