More info from Pat

Wayne is scheduled to undergo surgery tomorrow at 2:00. A pulmonary surgeon is going to clean out his airway, and they are also going to try to reconstruct his jaw. Jeanne and I were there this evening, but he did not wake up. She has to go back to Connecticut tomorrow and is, of course, very concerned that somebody is looking out for Wayne. He is in very good hands at the hospital, based on my observations and discussions with the nurses, and he will undoubtedly be hospitalized for a while. If anybody is inclined to work on getting his birth certificate and army discharge papers, please let me know. We will need those documents when interviewed by social security. Jeanne and I looked in his apartment and could not find those particular items. We did find out that in order to qualify for disability, his corrected vision must be worse than 20/200. Does anybody happen to know who his eye doctor is?

Respond to patmabley at yahoo dot com

Things you can do to help

Three things you can do to help:

1. Read the previous post, and then email Pat if you think you can be of help. Her email is:

patmabley at yahoo dot com - translate this to a regular email address. I put it here this way so web robots won't find it and put her on spam lists

2. Somebody call Henry Brunz. He called me and left a message. Tell him about this blog and tell him I don't want to talk about this with anyone yet. He didn't leave his phone number.

3. Somebody call Doug Bowers. Tell him the same thing. His phone number is 678-531-4740

Friday update

I just got this email from Pat Mabley which I will post in full:

Hey Tom. You can post as much or as little of the following as you deem appropriate.

Just got back from hospital. Wayne is more alert today and thus more agitated. He clearly wants to talk but, of course, can't, and the nurse will not let him attempt to write. When I assured him that his cats are being cared for and that Tom Joe has taken over his courier route, he seemed relieved. His physical condition is this: there appear to be no exit wounds. His face is not bandaged, nor is it mutilated. His mouth has been wired shut, and the eye that was injured has been sutured shut. The injured eye is grossly red and swollen; they are waiting for opthalmologist/surgeons to return from vacation to evaluate him and then, evidently, remove the eye and perhaps reconstruct the orbit. The left side of his face and head is very swollen. I'm not sure if he knows what happened; it's not my place to tell him anything about that. He is in the neurologic intensive care unit and is not allowed visitors; the only reason I have access is that I happened to be the one who called Jean, his sister, first and offered my assistance. I'm trying to help her gather up documents for social services/disability/SSI, essentially to prove that he is indigent and (we hope) eligible for benefits of some sort. The best bet, according to social workers, is for him to be declared legally blind, at which point he would become eligible for disability and perhaps other services. Worst case scenario is him being released to nowhere; that is appalling but possible. I welcome help/input from anyone who has experience with social services. I am certainly not trying to take charge but am doing what I can at this moment. I am quite willing to communicate via e-mail, but I don't like talking on the phone. Jean is planning to go back to Connecticut tomorrow, although she has not firmly made up her mind. I'll be going to the hospital daily while he is in intensive care, and then others can begin visiting.

Wayne's condition - Thursday July 26

Wayne is coming back to partial consciousness as they reduce the drugs they were giving him to keep him asleep. He seems to understand where he is. He is being fed through a tube in his nose. He can not talk because his jaw is wired shut.

No visitors are allowed yet.

If you want to help

Wayne's sister is in town trying to do things for Wayne. Her name is Jean. She needs help and asked that I post her phone number here for anyone who would like to help.

Call her on her cell at 203-927-5991.

I have been traumatized by this event and my only involvement will be maintaining this blog. Don't ask me to help in any other way. Email me if you want things added to the blog.

Wayne is still unconscious and in pretty much the same condition I described in the post Sunday.

Wayne's condition as of Sunday, July 22

I just talked to Wayne's sister Jean. This is what she tells me about his condition:

There is no brain damage. The worst thing that happened is that he lost his left eye. The upper left jaw and teeth were also blown away. They have done reconstructive surgery on his face and jaw. They are keeping him on drugs that keep him asleep and make him stay perfectly still because the surgery on his face is very delicate and it is important that he not move at all. We don't know when they will wake him up.

So it looks like he is going to live.

Remember there is no reason to call the hospital. They will tell you they don't know anything about him and that he is not there. This a some kind of crime safety measure because it was a shooting that is still under police investigation. Your best way to get information is probably just to read this blog.