His family said Cooper is now eating solid food and has also been able to visit his dog, George. The family also provided several photos of Cooper and George together, with the boy wearing a Minecraft shirt and a Spider-Man blanket. The bullet caused several significant injuries to Cooper, including a severed spinal cord, and left him paralyzed from the waist down, the family said. Days after the shooting, after he regained consciousness and was taken off a ventilator, Cooper asked to see his twin brother Luke and his dog. Luke was also injured by shrapnel and was treated and released from hospital last month. Cooper has spent the last month recovering at Comer Children’s Hospital in Chicago. Last week, his mother, Keely Roberts, released a video statement explaining her son’s injuries and plans for the future. “Cooper was shot in the back and the bullet exited his chest, which caused significant damage throughout his body, including his aorta, liver, esophagus and spinal cord,” he said. “We hope that with Cooper’s continued progress and with the continued prayers and support he receives from everyone; he will soon be able to move to the Shirley Ryan Ability Lab.” Roberts herself had bullet wounds to two parts of her leg and had had multiple surgeries on her leg, he said. He asked the audience to keep Cooper and his twin brother in their thoughts. “Please continue to follow and pray for Cooper and Luke. They are good, sweet boys who love everyone and want the best for everyone they know,” said Roberts. “They believe in the best in people and in the world. Their lives are so much more and better from this terrible thing than what happened to them. Their lives are not a tragedy, they are a triumph.” CNN’s Eric Levenson, Amanda Musa, Adrienne Broaddus and Andy Rose contributed to this report.
