Idaho Pastor Who Prayed for Ted Cruz Shot, but 'Miraculously Survives'
A 55-year-old pastor in Idaho, who prayed at a campaign rally for Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz and is seen as a vocal supporter of conservative issues, was allegedly shot by a former marine in his church's parking lot Sunday. Police were still on the lookout for the suspect Monday, as the victim's condition was described as stable.
Pastor Tim Remington of Altar Church in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, was recovering at Kootenai Health and Medical Center and was said to be in stable condition as of early Monday, according to KREM2.
The pastor's condition was described as "critical" Sunday. His injuries including a punctured lung and shattered pelvis, according to Fox 13.
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"One of the bullets TRIED to enter the brain but stopped at the skull," a friend of the pastor, Roger Crigger, wrote in a Facebook post. "Emergency room and [doctors] are calling this a miracle, I'm saying, by today's worldly standards it IS a miracle."
Remington led an invocation prayer at a campaign rally for Cruz at the Kootenai County Fairgrounds on Saturday.
The 30-year-old suspect, identified as Kyle Andrew Odom and believed to be armed and dangerous, shot at Remington in the church's parking lot on Sunday afternoon. Odom, who was described as a white man with blond hair and blue eyes, fled the scene in a 2004 silver Honda Accord. Remington received multiple gunshot wounds.
Odom is a former marine, according to The Washington Post.
The church's Associate Pastor John Padula told NBC News that the church was praying for the gunman as well as Remington.
"We don't love him less than anybody else," Padula was quoted as saying. "And we pray that he comes to know Jesus Christ as his lord and savior, so we don't want to see anything bad happen to him, either."
"Our prayers are with Pastor Tim, his family, and the doctors who are supervising his care," Catherine Frazier, a Cruz campaign spokeswoman, was quoted as saying. "We pray for his full recovery and are thankful for the efforts of the law enforcement to ensure the attacker is swiftly brought to justice."
Pastor Remington also heads Good Samaritan Rehabilitation, a program for alcohol and drug addicts in Idaho.
