COMATOSE TEACHER OPENS EYES\Perez's progress, safety measures ease fears of pupils in wake\of shooting.Byline: Terri Hardy and Kimberly Kindy kindy, kindie Noun pl -dies Austral & NZ informal a kindergarten Daily News Staff Writers With a bullet still lodged in his brain, teacher Alfredo Perez briefly opened his eyes Monday, a sign that buoyed the hopes of his wife and students at the school where he was shot. Doctors at Martin Luther King/Drew Medical Center said Perez opened his eyes spontaneously and has shown some "purposeful movement" on the right side of his body. But they say the 30-year-old teacher remains comatose co·ma·tose adj. 1. Of, relating to, or affected with coma. 2. Marked by lethargy; torpid. comatose (kō´m and on life support. But on a campus still in shock over Thursday's shooting, in which Perez was hit by a stray bullet fired in a gang dispute outside the school, the news produced smiles and tears. "We're so excited. We ask the nation to continue to pray for him," Rosemary Lucente, principal of Figueroa Elementary School elementary school: see school. , said of the progress report, which was aired on the school's public address system. "Nana! Mr. Perez opened his eyes today," Ryan and Bryan Tate chorused as they tumbled into their great-grandmother's car Monday afternoon. "Well thank goodness," said Mary Escobar, as she hugged the twin 8-year-olds. "These boys have been so nervous about this. Ryan broke down and started crying, saying it could have been them that was shot." On Monday, prosecutors weighed a possible felony assault charge against Frazier Joseph Francis, 18, the alleged triggerman in the shooting. No charges will be pursued against a second man, Zerron Martez White, 22, in the incident, police said. Francis will be arraigned today in Compton Municipal Court. Police have maintained almost constant patrols around the South Los Angeles South Los Angeles is the official name for a large geographic and cultural area lying to the southwest and southeast of downtown Los Angeles, California. The area was formerly called South Central Los Angeles, and is still sometimes called South Central. elementary school in the shooting's wake, and Los Angeles Mayor Richard Riordan has promised bulletproof Refers to extremely stable hardware and/or software that cannot be brought down no matter what unusual conditions arise. See industrial strength. bulletproof - Used of an algorithm or implementation considered extremely robust; lossage-resistant; capable of correctly windows will be installed - safety measures safety measures, n.pl actions (e.g., use of glasses, face masks) taken to protect patients and office personnel from such known hazards as particles and aerosols from high-speed rotary instruments, mercury vapor, radiation exposure, anesthetic and that have eased fears at the school. "It's unfortunate we have to think about these extra safety measures . . . but we have to do what's needed," Lucente said. Since the shooting, the school and the Los Angeles Unified School District The Los Angeles Unified School District (the "LAUSD") is the largest (in terms of number of students) public school system in California and the second-largest in the United States. Only the New York City Department of Education has a larger student population. have been inundated in·un·date tr.v. in·un·dat·ed, in·un·dat·ing, in·un·dates 1. To cover with water, especially floodwaters. 2. with calls of support for the Perez family, and to provide financial assistance. "A lot of people want to express their feelings to the Perez family - to let them know that people are praying for them," said Helen Bernstein, head of the teacher's union. "They need some kind of outlet, some way to show their support." Bernstein said United Teachers Los Angeles is in the process of setting up a fund for the family and asked that all donations be sent in care of the Perez Family Support Fund. |
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