Witness copes following shooting death of 10-year-old he tried to save

TOLEDO, Ohio (WTVG) - A man who jumped into action after witnessing the fatal shooting of a Toledo child is speaking out.

10-year-old Damia Ezell was shot in the chest on Feb. 12 while in the car with her uncle and brother. She later died at a Toledo hospital.

Robert Rossiter was at a coffee shop across the street when it happened. He dragged Damia out of the vehicle after it crashed near Collingwood and Delaware.

“Eyes were open but she was unconscious,” Rossiter said. “She was breathing but very very low. It was more like a wheeze. It almost sounded like she was gargling on her own blood.”

Rossiter is trained in first-aid and did all he knew how.

“I tried to maintain as much pressure as possible, trying to keep her. At the moment I was trying to keep her awake, but looking back at it I’m not sure she was conscious.”

When the ambulance arrived, Rossiter thought Damia could pull through.

“I walked away thinking that there was a possibility that since she was still breathing when the paramedics came that maybe she would make it,” Rossiter said. “I went out to take my mind off of it and that’s when I get the text message. I pretty much broke down. I haven’t really slept.”

Rossiter says it will be a long road to recovery but he wants Damia’s family to know they will always be in his thoughts and prayers.

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