Family Prays for Wounded 11-Year-Old

As an 11-year-old lay in grave condition Monday from a gunshot wound to the head, his mother described him as a loving child who would help with household chores and dreamed of being a firefighter so he could save lives.

Sitting in UCI Medical Center, Monalisa Talalima recalled a much more joyous day spent at the same Orange hospital--the day her son Phillip was born.

“He would always help out. He’d say, ‘Mom, go to bed. I’ll do the dishes,’ ” Talalima said as her husband remained with their son in the intensive-care unit.

Police declined to reveal the few clues they have in the Saturday night shooting, which occurred after the Lynwood boy, his brother and some friends from church were walking along a Santa Ana street and stopped to look at bikes in a driveway.

Phillip Talalima and his family had attended services at a Mormon church in Santa Ana, said Lena, his 12-year-old sister. Afterward, the boy walked Lena to a relative’s house where the family usually spent Saturday nights. There Phillip played video games with his 13-year-old brother and friends.

Later, the sister said, the boys became hungry and decided to go to a Jack in the Box. The boy borrowed $10 for a meal and kissed his mother goodbye.

“He gave my mom a big kiss,” Lena said. “He walked out, he said, ‘I love you, Mom,’ and that was the last time my mom saw him.”

Police said Phillip, his brother and three other boys, ages 14, 15 and 16, stopped in front of a North Gates Street residence about 10:30 p.m. to look at two bicycles. A neighbor who apparently thought the boys were trying to steal the bikes came out shouting at them. The startled boys ran in separate directions, and witnesses then heard four or five gunshots, said Police Sgt. Raul Luna.

Police found Phillip in the road. He was taken to the hospital, where his condition was described as very critical.

Several shell casings were found in the street but investigators have not established if the shots were fired by someone on foot, in a vehicle or from a residence, Luna said.