James Evans' Father's Day abruptly turned into a tragedy after the 66-year-old was shot in the head by his son-in-law while he was praying in a special holiday Mass service in Utah.
Police have arrested 35-year-old Charles Ricky Jennings in connection with the shooting. According to witnesses, Jennings, a parishioner at the church, walked into the Mass with his wife Cheryl. Moments later, police say he fired a single shot at the back of Cheryl's father's head, nearly killing him, reports the Associated Press.
Afterward, Jennings stole a truck from a nearby neighbor at gunpoint and led police on a highway chase, said officials. He was caught hours later on foot after the truck ran out of gas.
Jennings, a father to a 3-year-old boy, was charged Tuesday with attempted murder, aggravated burglary and robbery and possession of a firearm by a restricted person. His bail has been set at $105,000.
Police are still trying to determine why Jennings shot his father-in-law, said Ogden Police Lt. Danielle Croyle on Tuesday. They think he may have been drinking or on drugs, and detectives know the couple had a history of domestic disputes that may have triggered Sunday's shooting, she said.
Evans was struck at the side of his head, the bullet going through near his ear and out his cheek and missing his brain, said Dr. Barbara Kerwin, the director of the intensive care unit at McDay-Dee Hospital in Ogden.
"He turned his head just at the right time," his wife said Monday, crying at a hospital news conference. "If didn't turn his head, he would have been hit in the back of the head and he would have been dead."
Doctors say Evans is awake and is communicating with hand gestures and writing, however he will need reconstructive surgery and rehab to learn to swallow and speak again, reports CBS News. Tuesday is Evans' 66th birthday.
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