A 7-month-old infant shot in the head in New Iberia last week has been discharged from a Louisiana hospital. Family members have identified the young girl as Ire'Anna Linzer, with some calling her a miracle baby for escaping death.
The Sacramento Bee reported that Linzer and her mother were caught in the crossfire of stray bullets during a drive-by shooting in the 200 block of CV Jackson Drive on Friday, March 18. Dariana Linzer was carrying baby Ire'Anna in her arms when the shooting occurred, leaving both of them with serious injuries. Dariana was shot in the face and lost her eye in the process.
Linzer told News 10 that she is scheduled to visit an ocularist soon, who will make a prosthetic eye for her to help create that normal look. Linzer will also undergo surgery to cover up other parts of her face disfigured by skin peeling due to the shooting.
Drive-by shooting, a bad dream for Linzer
Linzer said that the doctors told her they would take skin from other parts of her body to cover the two patches of missing skin on her face. The 18-year-old mother, who was at home with her aunt at the time of the incident, says it all still feels like a bad dream.
Linzer said it is so unbelievable that they are all even alive after the shooting. Linzer added that sometimes she still can't believe this is real and cannot imagine why someone would do this to them.
Linzer also talked about her miracle baby, saying that it has been a struggle getting Ire'Anna readjusted to her surroundings. Linzer said that the first day her baby girl came back home, she started crying and just cried non-stop, according to a report by KLFY.
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Linzer's miracle baby crying non-stop since the shooting
Fortunately for baby Linzer, her grandmother was there to calm her down, with Dariana saying that she is the only person who can hold her child and rock her to sleep. She added that it is just not the same anymore following the shooting, with her miracle baby now crying all the time. Dariana noted that they are used to her baby laughing, but now it is like she doesn't recognize her mother anymore.
The Linzer family has more good news, with Dariana revealing that she is pregnant with her second child. Linzer said that she is so happy that her unborn child was not injured during the shooting and that they ask everyone to keep them in their prayers.
According to WGNO, the New Iberia Police Criminal Division named Amiri Benoit and Mactori Doucet as the prime suspects in the drive-by shooting. Upon arrest, Benoit and Doucet would face seven counts of attempted 1st-degree murder, illegal use of weapons, use of firearms in a school zone, and aggravated criminal damage to property.
