Shooting victim says he has no plans for revenge

After a near death experience, Austin McDowall said that he would not be looking for revenge, but rather he would be looking for a job and an opportunity to move out of the country{{more}} when he is released from the hospital.

McDowall, who suffered three gunshot wounds to his hip, buttock and side, has been a patient at the Milton Cato Memorial Hospital for about a week.

According to McDowall, the incident happened late Saturday, January 21, 2012, while coming from his girlfriend in Redemption Sharpes.

He said that on his way home, he heard a male’s voice saying “look him, look him”. McDowall said that he paid the voice no mind because he was from the area. He then recalled hearing the voice saying “Boy, look the man, shoot him now, shoot him”.

McDowall said that he saw two persons, but couldn’t recognize them, because they had their shirts pulled over their faces, leaving only their eyes visible. He stated that the first person, who he said had a shotgun, was hesitant, so the other one opened fire on him.

“So, the only thing I coulda do is jump over a bank… hold on and take me hand and skate go down, and run up in a gutter and calling for help, nah,” the victim recalled.

“How the people them hear the gunshot, like the people them been afraid to come out,” McDowall said.

He claimed that he went to about five houses asking for help, but no one assisted him.

“So, I run go round, check me family, me own family, me family telling me, me is a badman, I suppose to defend myself. So, I run go up by a man name Charlo and call him and that is how I get the assistance, and he call the police and the police carry me hospital,” he stated.

When asked if he has any idea why someone would want to do something like that to him, the recently released prisoner told SEARCHLIGHT that he has absolutely no idea. Refuting claims that he is a “badman”, Mcdowall said that the police are the ones who caused the stigma. He claims that the police pinned a shooting charge on him that resulted in his recent prison sentence.

The disheartened victim said that he would have definitely taken revenge if he had seen who the persons were, but for now he would just be thinking about what he is going to do after being discharged from the hospital and he would be staying away from certain areas, so as to avoid any more trouble.