For William Alexander Sr. learning to walk again is not an option, it’s a necessity.
In April 2010, his 17-year-old son, William Alexander Jr., was gunned down inside his father's car in a drive-by shooting in Miami at NW 127th Street and 15th Avenue. Alexander vowed to track down his son's killer, and he went on a hunt.
He posted pictures of his son's face throughout the community offering a reward for an arrest. He claims that one night two months later, he was approached by a man, “He say ‘You still looking for me?’"
"I say, Look for who? The only person I am looking for is the guy that killed my son. I looked down and seen the gun in his hand. I said 'Oh my God' and the next thing I heard was shots," he said.
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Alexander said he was shot five times in the legs and back, and had been in a coma for three months at Jackson Memorial Hospital, where he goes for twice-weekly rehabilitation sessions.
He struggles with rehab, and says his body, weakened by the injuries, set in motion a disease he never knew he had: diabetes. He recently got fitted for prosthetic legs after his legs had to be amputated because of diabetes.
"In order for me to do what I got to do for closure, I have to have my legs. I have to walk again," he said.