Nov 25, 2009 11:55 pm US/Eastern
Surgeon: Bronx Shooting Victim To Fully Recover
15-Year-Old Vada Vasquez Speaks Her First Words Since Nov. 16 Shooting; Doctors At Lincoln Hospital Stunned, Proud
Reporting
Lou Young
NEW YORK (CBS) ―
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Vada Vasquez, 15, was shot in the head by a stray bullet while walking home from school in the Bronx on Nov. 16, 2009.
CBS
It's a Thanksgiving miracle and precious gift for one family.
For eight days, 15-year-old Vada Vasquez has been in the fight of her life -- after being shot in the head by a stray bullet.
Now, there is stunning news of her condition.
The injured teen's mother and sister have been at her side since it happened, the frightening stray bullet wound to the head last week that doctors now say Vasquez can overcome.
"I expect she'll make a full recovery," said Lincoln Hospital trauma surgeon Dr. Naravan Sundaresan said.
"It's a great Thanksgiving; it's going to be a good Christmas," mother Gemma Vasquez said. "It's going to be a good everything for me.
The revelation at Lincoln Hospital on Wednesday was nothing short of amazing for a girl who lost a part of her brain roughly the size of a golf ball. The doctors said she will re-learn what was lost, and her mother reported she's already begun to speak again.
"She says 'mom,' she says 'thank you, please, I love you.' She says a couple of things," Gemma Vasquez said.
There are five alleged gang members in custody for the shooting that put Vada Vasquez in the hospital. The accused gunman is all of 16, himself. That revelation has particularly unnerved the family.
"It's unbelievable, you know? He's almost the same age as my sister. Well, he should've been in school, anywhere else besides running around with a bunch of kids and carrying guns and stuff," sister Angela Vasquez said.
When asked if the shooter is beyond redemption, beyond her forgiveness, Gemma Vasquez said, "It would be very hard that I could forgive him at this moment. No, not for the pain I see my child has. No."
The trauma team at Lincoln Hospital said Vada has no memory of the shooting. They are proud of what they've done, although they are mindful that they didn't do it alone.
"I think the miracle is that she was saved. I'm sure there was some unknown force that helped in this," Dr. Sundaresan said.
"She is a living miracle. This morning when I went to go see her she said 'thank you' and gave me a big hug," physician's assistant Rachel Leher added.
Just like a typical teenager, one of Vada Vasquez' big concerns now is the hair that was shaved off for the operation that saved her life. Her doctors said she could be out of this hospital and on her way to a rehabilitation center before Christmas.
(© MMX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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