22-year-old mother paralyzed in drive-by shooting days after giving birth

Less than a week after giving birth, a 22-year-old Nebraska woman was rushed back to a hospital after being shot in the neck during a drive-by shooting.

The injury left the new mother, Zaria Rodriguez, paralyzed from the neck down.

Omaha police have arrested one suspect tied to the Nov. 14 shooting.

Zaria’s husband, who was driving the car when the gunfire rang out, pleaded for others for help and justice.

“I only saw my wife collapse,” Luis Rodriguez said. “(I) saw her eyes roll back, and I really thought to myself, ‘She’s gone.'”

It was only five days after he and Zaria welcomed their second child, a baby boy. Both children were in the car when it happened, too.

“(Zaria) was paralyzed on impact,” he said. Rodriguez said he rushed to find help from nearby firefighters and paramedics. His silver Nissan sedan was pierced by bullets.

Tabetha Smith, Zaria Rodriguez’ aunt, said she was heartbroken after learning what happened.

“I wish that on nobody. Not knowing if somebody you watched grow up — I’d seen her be born — not knowing if they were alive if they were dead,” Smith said.

Rodriguez said his family was on their way back from buying a TV when he noticed a group of guys walk out onto the road along Parker Street. He said he reacted by honking his horn.

“I made them aware that I was there. When they saw me, they looked back, tried to jump on the car. I swerved, to see, try to avoid them,” Rodriguez said.

Rodriguez shared still images he received from cameras mounted on nearby homes where the shooting happened.

“I had a dashcam. The police have the dashcam. They were seen getting out the store too, they have cameras in the store,” he said.

Rodriguez said in the first moments, he saw a blue Hyundai sedan pull up next to his car and someone started firing a gun.

So far in this investigation, Omaha Police Department officers have arrested Cameron Koonce Jr., 17. He faces several counts of first-degree felony assault and using a gun/weapon to commit a felony.

Both Rodriguez and Smith said they think Koonce should be charged with attempted murder. Rodriguez also said he wants police to find the alleged other suspects who are responsible for paralyzing his wife and putting his babies’ lives in danger.

“I want to bring justice, even though they only caught one person. There’s multiple people,” Rodriguez said.

“There were two kids in the car that their mother will never hold. She’ll never be able to feed her babies,” Smith said.

Zaria’s family set up a donation page through Facebook to raise funds for medical bills and needed supplies for her children. To learn more, click here.

Source: WBAL-TV11