- A teen was shot in a church parking lot Wednesday in West Valley City.
- The shooter asked for the victim by name before firing from an SUV, police said.
- The injured boy is recovering, and police are searching for the white SUV.
WEST VALLEY CITY — A teenage boy was injured Wednesday after getting shot in a church parking lot.
About 12:45 p.m., a group of 13- and 14-year-olds were hanging out at a church parking lot at 1510 W. Parliament Ave., when an SUV drove up, and the people inside started talking with them. The people in the car asked for a specific person, and one of the teen boys said it was him and stepped toward the vehicle, West Valley Police Lt. Julie Jorgensen said.
A person in the back seat of the car then fired a gun, hitting the 14-year-old boy before fleeing the area. The boy suffered a "through-and-through" gunshot wound that entered near his shoulder and exited out his back, Jorgensen said.
Cheryl Graff lives in the apartment complex next to the church and was outside when she heard what sounded like a firework. She then heard some boys freaking out, and she went toward them thinking a boy was hurt from a firework.
"So I came around and went to the back; there were four young boys. One of them was on the ground, and I said, 'What happened?' And they said he has been shot," she said.
Graff had the boys use one of their belts to make a tourniquet for the boy while they waited for help to arrive. Initially, one of the teen's uncles showed up to take the boy to the hospital, but they converged with police, and he was transported via ambulance to Intermountain Medical Center.
"He's not having a good day, but he isn't gonna die. He's going to make it. So we're grateful for that," Graff said.
It is unclear if the shooter and victim knew each other prior, but it does appear to be a targeted shooting as they asked for him by name, Jorgensen said. Police are searching for the white SUV, which is still at large, and scanning the scene to try to find the bullet.
The neighborhood where the incident occurred is "a really quiet area normally," Jorgensen said.
