Partially-paralyzed man at Oakland care facility shot dead in room
OAKLAND, Calif. - A 23-year-old man, who was already partially paralyzed, was shot and killed in his room in the middle of the night at an Oakland care facility.
Paris Moffett was killed in his room at Lake Merritt Healthcare Center on MacArthur Boulevard in Oakland's Adams Point neighborhood just before 1 a.m. Saturday.
"He did not deserve to go that way. It was a heinous crime," his mother, who did not want to be identified told KTVU.
Moffett had been paralyzed from the waist down after he was shot at 27th and Broadway in Oakland in September. Another man was shot and killed in that incident. Now, Moffett's mother is mourning her only child.
"I can't believe anybody would do that to somebody that's not even able to even protect themselves," his mother said. She said her son was wounded in the earlier shooting as he left a wake for one of her relatives.
Moffett is the son of Paris Moffett, an alleged San Francisco gang leader who was convicted in federal court of possession with intent to distribute crack cocaine and possession of a firearm.
Authorities said Monday that the younger Moffett's shooting death was not a random act.
"Our understanding was, it was a targeted shooting, a targeted murder," said Oakland City Councilmember Dan Kalb, who represents the area. "No one expects to go to a skilled nursing facility and expect to be in danger from a shooting. That is unheard of."
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Two men snuck in through an unlocked back door and went into a room the victim shares with at least one other patient and then shot him numerous times. He died at the scene.
The care facility sits next door to Temple Beth Abraham.
"It's very scary," said Rayna Arnold, the temple's executive director. "We care about the people around us. We've had a really wonderful relationship with the convalescent home next door.
Tony Chicotel, an attorney with California Advocates for Nursing Home Reform, said there is a delicate balance between allowing visitors at such facilities all hours and ensuring safety.
"I advocate for, sort of, an open-door policy for facilities, but that said, there's always supposed to be some level of security," Chicotel said.
An armed security guard was on the premises on Monday, but only after the shooting death. Family members of other patients told KTVU that before the killing security was lax.
In a statement, the facility said in part that it is "conducting our own internal investigation into the incident. Our sympathies are with the family at this difficult time."
Henry Lee is a reporter for KTVU. Email Henry at Henry.Lee@fox.com. Follow him on Twitter @henrykleektvu and Facebook facebook.com/henrykleefan.