8-year-old boy paralyzed in Highland Park shooting returns to school
HIGHLAND PARK, Ill. – An 8-year-old boy who was shot and partially paralyzed when a gunman opened fire at a suburban Chicago Fourth of July parade has returned to school, his family said this week.
According to the Chicago Tribune and the Chicago Sun-Times, Cooper Roberts, who underwent a lifesaving surgery and months of rehabilitation after the deadly Highland Park shooting, started third grade, his parents, Jason and Keely Roberts, said in a statement Monday on the family’s GoFundMe page.
8-year-old boy shot, paralyzed in Highland Park shooting returns home after months of treatment
“For a long time, we didn’t know if this day would ever come; a day where we were able to watch Cooper return, with his brother Luke, to school again,” the parents said of the boy and his twin brother. “The life-threatening nature of his injuries and the significant rehabilitation he has needed (and continues to need for hours every day) made it seem as though returning to school would be something we could only hope for way in the distant future.”
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Although Cooper’s “transition back to school will be slow and gradual” because of his need for therapy, his return marks “an incredible milestone,” the parents said.
“It has been one of the most humbling and hopeful experiences of our lives to watch our precious 8-year-old who has had so much cruelly and violently ripped away from him – his life needlessly and forever changed – so cheerfully and excitedly count down the days leading to his return to school,” the statement continued. “Cooper is as aware as any little boy can be of the new challenges ahead of him at school, and he is willingly facing them head-on to be reunited with the children and adults from his school whom he loves so dearly.”
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The update came more than three months after authorities said Robert Crimo III opened fire at the Independence Day celebration, killing seven people and wounding dozens, according to The Associated Press. He faces 21 counts of first-degree murder, as well as 48 counts each of attempted murder and aggravated battery, the news agency reported.
– The Associated Press contributed to this report.
A woman wipes tears after a mass shooting at the Highland Park Fourth of July parade in Highland Park, Ill., a Chicago suburb, Monday, July 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
Empty chairs are seen on the street after a mass shooting at the Highland Park Fourth of July parade in downtown Highland Park, Ill., a Chicago suburb on Monday, July 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
Law enforcement search in a building after a mass shooting at the Highland Park Fourth of July parade in downtown Highland Park, a Chicago suburb on Monday, July 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
Law enforcement search after a mass shooting at the Highland Park Fourth of July parade in downtown Highland Park, Ill., a Chicago suburb on Monday, July 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
A Law enforcement officer conducts a search after a mass shooting at the Highland Park Fourth of July parade in downtown Highland Park, Ill., a Chicago suburb on Monday, July 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
A woman looks outside from her home after a mass shooting at the Highland Park Fourth of July parade in downtown Highland Park, Ill., a Chicago suburb on Monday, July 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
Law enforcement conduct a search after a mass shooting at the Highland Park Fourth of July parade in downtown Highland Park, Ill., a Chicago suburb on Monday, July 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
Law enforcement search after a mass shooting at the Highland Park Fourth of July parade in downtown Highland Park, Ill., a suburb of Chicago, on Monday, July 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
A man carries his belongings after a mass shooting at the Highland Park Fourth of July parade in downtown Highland Park, Ill., a Chicago suburb on Monday, July 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
Students are escorted by police officers as they cross under police tape after a mass shooting at the Highland Park Fourth of July parade in downtown Highland Park, Ill., a Chicago suburb on Monday, July 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
Law enforcement search after a mass shooting at the Highland Park Fourth of July parade in downtown Highland Park, Ill., a Chicago suburb on Monday, July 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
American flags are pictured after a mass shooting at the Highland Park Fourth of July parade in downtown Highland Park, Ill., a Chicago suburb on Monday, July 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
Empty chairs, a bicycle and a stroller are seen after a mass shooting at the Highland Park Fourth of July parade in downtown Highland Park, Ill., a Chicago suburb on Monday, July 4, 2022. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
First responders work the scene of a shooting at a Fourth of July parade on July 4, 2022, in Highland Park, Illinois.
First responders work the scene of a shooting at a Fourth of July parade on July 4, 2022, in Highland Park, Illinois.
Chairs and blankets are left abandoned after a shooting at a Fourth of July parade on July 4, 2022, in Highland Park, Illinois.
A Fourth of July parade-goer runs for cover after gunfire was heard at the parade Monday morning, July 4, 2022, in a suburb of Chicago.
First responders work the scene of a shooting at a Fourth of July parade on July 4, 2022, in Highland Park, Illinois.
Empty chairs sit along the sidewalk after parade-goers fled Highland Park’s Fourth of July parade after shots were fired, Monday, July 4, 2022 in Chicago.
First responders work the scene of a shooting at a Fourth of July parade on July 4, 2022, in Highland Park, Illinois.
First responders work the scene of a shooting at a Fourth of July parade on July 4, 2022, in Highland Park, Illinois.
Terrified parade-goers fled Highland Park’s Fourth of July parade after shots were fired, leaving behind their belongings as they sought safety, Monday, July 4, 2022, in Highland Park, Ill.
People gather for a candelight vigil near the scene of a mass shooting the day before at a Fourth of July parade, on July 5, 2022, in Highland Park, Illinois.
A candelight vigil is held near the scene of a mass shooting yesterday at a Fourth of July parade, on July 5, 2022, in Highland Park, Illinois.
People add strips of cloth with names and phrases memorializing the victims at a vigil near the scene of a mass shooting yesterday at a Fourth of July parade, on July 5, 2022, in Highland Park, Illinois.
U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris speaks, near the scene of a mass shooting during a Fourth of July parade, on July 5, 2022, in Highland Park, Illinois.
People light candles during a vigil near the scene of a mass shooting yesterday at a Fourth of July parade, on July 5, 2022, in Highland Park, Illinois.
People gather for a vigil near the scene of a mass shooting yesterday at a Fourth of July parade, on July 5, 2022, in Highland Park, Illinois.
Hillary Heller, Shannon Rowe and Lucy Heller embrace near the scene of a mass shooting yesterday at a Fourth of July parade, on July 5, 2022, in Highland Park, Illinois.
People arrive for a vigil near the scene of a mass shooting yesterday at a Fourth of July parade, on July 5, 2022, in Highland Park, Illinois.
People add strips of cloth with names and phrases memorializing the victims at a vigil near the scene of a mass shooting yesterday at a Fourth of July parade, on July 5, 2022, in Highland Park, Illinois.
Orange ribbons adorn the area of a candelight vigil near the scene of a mass shooting yesterday at a Fourth of July parade, on July 5, 2022, in Highland Park, Illinois.
A couple goes to lay flowers near the scene of a shooting at a Fourth of July parade on July 5, 2022, in Highland Park, Illinois.
A couple goes to lay flowers near the scene of a shooting at a Fourth of July parade on July 5, 2022, in Highland Park, Illinois.
