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In times of grave tragedy, God can be the only way through. One Minnesota family is living testament to that.<\/p>\nThis was horrific!\u00a0 I’m glad the little boy is going to be OK.\u00a0 We will say a prayer for him here at the LIGHT! and pray that his attacker would find both Jesus and justice.<\/p>\n
In times of grave tragedy, God can be the only way through. One Minnesota family is living testament to that.<\/p>\n
The parents of Landen Hoffman say that Jesus \u201csaved our son\u2019s life and is healing him in the most miraculous ways\u201d after the 5-year-old boy was thrown from a balcony at the Mall of America a little over two weeks ago, according to Fox News<\/a>.<\/p>\n That message came as part of a statement Friday in which the family announced the boy was \u201calert and conscious\u201d and no longer in critical condition as a result of the unprovoked attack<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are now turning our focus to additional surgeries, healing, rehabilitation and eventually a return home, which we hope will happen by June,\u201d the statement said.<\/p>\n Miracle recovery: The family of 5-year-old Landen Hoffman, the boy thrown off a balcony at the Mall of America, said Friday that he is out of critical condition and is \u201calert and responsive.\u201d https:\/\/t.co\/T4dZ4oZaHL<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 News 8 \u2013 WROC-TV (@News_8) April 26, 2019<\/a><\/p>\n The family\u2019s pastor also announced during an Easter Sunday service that the young boy had \u201czero evidence of brain damage,\u201d the New York Post<\/a> reported.<\/p>\n According to KARE-TV<\/a>, Pastor Mac Hammond said the results came after a five-hour MRI that showed injuries more in line with if the child \u201cfell off a bicycle instead of off the third floor of the mall.\u201d The pastor said that the results were \u201ctruly a miracle.\u201d<\/p>\n The family\u2019s lawyer wouldn\u2019t confirm that, however, citing<\/a> privacy concerns.<\/p>\n The tragic incident began on the third floor of the mega-mall just after 10 a.m. on April 12. According to another Post article<\/a>, the criminal complaint stated\u00a0suspect Emmanuel Deshawn Aranda had stood \u201cvery close to\u201d Landen and his mom. This prompted the mother to ask \u201cif they were in the way and should move.\u201d<\/p>\n That\u2019s when Aranda allegedly \u201cpicked up the victim and threw him\u201d 39 feet down to the ground floor, the article stated.<\/p>\n Prosecutors say that the attack resulted in life-threatening injuries, including multiple fractures, serious head trauma and bleeding.<\/p>\n The Post reported Aranda admitted to the crime and told police he was \u201clooking for someone to kill\u201d and had originally \u201cplanned to kill an adult, because they usually stand near the balcony.\u201d<\/p>\n The suspect \u201cacknowledged repeatedly in his interview that he had planned and intended to kill someone at the mall that day and that he was aware that what he was doing was wrong,\u201d the complaint read, according to the Post.<\/p>\n Aranda was arrested at a light-rail stop waiting for a train after escaping mall patrons who tried to stop him. The suspect had previously been banned from the mall after police arrested him three times in 2015; those arrests included throwing an object from the third-floor balcony \u2014 the same floor from which Landen was thrown.<\/p>\n He also has a warrant out for assault in Illinois. He now stands charged with attempted premeditated first-degree murder.<\/p>\n \u201cThis crime has shocked the community,\u201d a statement from Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman read. \u201cThat a child, with his mother, at a safe public area like a mall, could be violently attacked for no reason is chilling for everyone.\u201d<\/p>\n This sort of crime is the apotheosis of evil; normal people can barely conceive of the kind of twisted hatred that would cause a human being to kill someone randomly and then decide, because an adult was apparently unavailable, that a child would do.<\/p>\n And yet, even in this moment of profound darkness, Hoffman\u2019s parents acknowledge that God \u201csaved our son\u2019s life and is healing him in the most miraculous ways.\u201d<\/p>\n Not only that, but a GoFundMe<\/a> page has raised over $1 million toward the 5-year-old\u2019s medical care.<\/p>\n \u201cThe road to recovery remains long, but with God and you, we are assured to make it through,\u201d the family\u2019s statement reads. \u201cPlease keep praying for our son and may our loving God bless you and everyone you love.\u201d<\/p>\n And, indeed, one can only pray<\/a> that God is with both Landen and his family in this moment of anguish. He\u2019s already brought them this far, and our hopes remain that He restores Landen to full health and ensures that his assailant is punished.<\/p>\n We are committed to truth and accuracy in all of our journalism. Read our editorial standards<\/a>.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n This content was originally published here<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n