National Guardsman Healing After Being Shot in the Nation's Capital
A member of the Air National Guard is on the mend after he was gravely wounded in an targeted attack last month in the US capital.
The family of Andrew Wolfe, 24, say "his head wound is slowly healing and that he's beginning to 'look more like himself,'" said the state's chief executive Patrick Morrisey.
The soldier's relatives anticipates the military non-commissioned officer to be in acute care for the coming fortnight, and they feel optimistic about his progress, said the governor.
The serviceman was one of two West Virginia National Guard members injured by gunfire when a gunman began shooting in proximity to the presidential residence on November 26th. His colleague, 20-year-old Sarah Beckstrom, died from her injuries.
"We continue to ask all state residents and Americans for their thoughts and prayers!" Morrisey declared.
The governor attended a candlelight gathering on last Friday night for Staff Sgt Wolfe at a local secondary school in his hometown, where the guardsman was once a pupil.
A clergyman at the event read a statement from the soldier's parents, Jason and Melody Wolfe.
"We know that there is a difficult journey to go," they wrote, as reported by local news outlet Metro News.
"But our faith keeps us hopeful. We remain thankful for the well-wishes and the encouragement from people all over the world."
Previously, the governor said Staff Sgt Wolfe had responded to a nurse with a positive gesture and was able to move his toes.
Law enforcement have charged the alleged gunman, an Afghan national named the suspect, with first-degree murder and attempted murder.
Before coming to the United States in two years ago, he was once a member of a special forces unit in a CIA-backed unit that worked with American troops in Afghanistan.
Staff Sgt Wolfe was one of 2,000 militia personnel whom President Donald Trump deployed to the nation's capitol in last summer as part of his policy initiative in Democratic-led cities.
In the aftermath of the incident, the former president said he desired another 500 National Guard troops sent to the nation's capital.
The Trump administration has also referenced the shooting as a justification for additional restrictive policies.
They have cancelled all citizenship ceremonies for immigrants from a list of nations that were part of a entry restriction announced over the summer, among them the suspect's home country.