Air Force Staff Sergeant Recovering After Being Shot in Washington DC
A member of the National Guard is showing improvement after he was critically injured in an ambush-style shooting last month in the US capital.
The family of the 24-year-old soldier, 24, say "the injury to his head is gradually improving and that he's beginning to 'look more like himself,'" stated West Virginia Governor Patrick Morrisey.
The soldier's relatives expects the military non-commissioned officer to be in intensive treatment for the coming fortnight, and they feel hopeful about his recovery, according to the official's statement.
Staff Sgt Wolfe was one of two state guardsmen shot when a shooter began shooting not far from the White House on 26 November. His fellow guardsmember, twenty-year-old Sarah Beckstrom, succumbed to her wounds.
"Our request remains for all West Virginians and Americans for their thoughts and prayers!" the governor said.
The governor attended a candlelight gathering on last Friday night for Staff Sgt Wolfe at Musselman High School in his hometown, where the serviceman was once a student.
A clergyman at the vigil shared a message from the soldier's parents, his family.
"It is clear to us that there is a long road to go," they expressed, as reported by regional media Metro News.
"But our belief keeps us hopeful. We remain thankful for the well-wishes and the support from people all over the globe."
Earlier in the week, the state official said Staff Sgt Wolfe had responded to a nurse with a positive gesture and was capable of move his toes.
Law enforcement have charged the suspected shooter, an Afghan national named Rahmanullah Lakanwal, with premeditated homicide and attempted murder.
Before coming to the US in two years ago, he was once a counterterrorism soldier in a paramilitary group that operated alongside US forces in Afghanistan.
Staff Sgt Wolfe was one of two thousand National Guard members whom President Donald Trump deployed to the nation's capitol in August as part of his policy initiative in urban centers.
Following the shooting, Trump said he desired an additional five hundred military personnel deployed to the nation's capital.
The Trump administration has also cited the shooting as a justification for additional immigration crackdown measures.
They have cancelled all citizenship ceremonies for immigrants from 19 countries that were part of a travel ban announced over the summer, among them Afghanistan.