A Victorville, California father of five is recovering after being shot while trying to break up a fight in which a man repeatedly punched a woman in the face.
Jorge Ramirez Galdamez stepped in after the man repeatedly punched the woman in the alley behind El Compadre restaurant in Hollywood around 2 a.m. Saturday, following a night of Cinco de Mayo festivities.
Galdamez had driven there to give partygoers a special experience, setting up tables, lighting, speakers and more. But after the restaurant closed, clean-up turned into chaos after he heard an argument in the alley.
“He hit her once and then he hit her again, and then he proceeded to open the door and continue to hit her,” Galdamez recalled.
Galdamez said that he got on the attacker’s back as he continued to hit the woman in the car. That’s when the man grabbed the gun and began turning toward Galdamez. Galdamez grabbed the gun and pushed it down, which is when the man shot him in the abdomen.
After the shooting, the man drove off with the injured woman in a white Mercedes.
Galdamez was rushed to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center for emergency surgery.
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“All he tried to do was help and you almost took him from his family,” said Delores McKinniss, Galdamez’s wife.
Their pair’s 12-year anniversary was Sunday, and they spent it in the hospital.
“This is who I have been with for 12 years and who I am going to spend the rest of my life with, and I’m so grateful that he’s mine,” McKinniss said. “If I say one thing, I’m so grateful that I get to say he’s mine.”
Galdamez was released from the hospital Wednesday night.
He said he’s thankful for his business partner, who helped, as well as a woman who sat with him after he was shot.
However, Galdamez remains worried for the woman who was punched. The Los Angeles Police Department has not made any arrests, but detectives hope someone will come forward with information.
