Thousands Raised on GoFundMe for LA Christian Bookstore Owner Who Was Shot

The bookstore Librería Cristiana Alito on South Alvarado Street in Los Angeles in August 2022. Google Maps/Screenshot via California Insider

A man in Southern California may never walk again after he was shot outside his Christian bookstore earlier this month, according to family members who started a GoFundMe to pay for medical expenses, with nearly $30,000 raised so far.

Luis Hernandez, 41, was closing his store near MacArthur Park in Los Angeles on April 6 when he was shot for no apparent reason in front of his wife and kids, according to media reports.

Suspects include a Hispanic male and female, the Los Angeles Police Department told news outlets.

“Prayers and positive energy are deeply appreciated as we trust in God’s grace for Luis’s healing,” Mr. Hernandez’s cousin Nora Flores wrote on the GoFundMe page.

Before he was shot, Mr. Hernandez had placed his children—ages 2, 4, and 8—inside his car parked outside the store on the 700 block of South Alvarado Street. While locking up the store with his wife, a person on the sidewalk began arguing with a group of people in a gray Toyota Camry parked next to Mr. Hernandez’s car, which prompted him to walk over and attempt to move his car, officers told the Los Angeles Times. It was when he walked to his car to move it that he was shot in the lower back by someone inside the Camry, the news outlet reported.

Mr. Hernandez was treated by first responders before being taken to Kaiser Permanente Hospital for surgery on a gunshot wound to his lower spine, according to media reports.

His cousin, Ms. Flores, told news outlets the family was informed by doctors that Mr. Hernandez wouldn’t walk again, but the family remains hopeful that physical therapy will restore his ability, according to a post on the GoFundMe page.

“We remain steadfast in our faith and hope that with your support and prayers, Luis will be able to walk again. Your generosity and positive energy are invaluable to us during this challenging time,” the post reads.

The sole provider for his family, Mr. Hernandez opened the store about six years ago and was working part time with his wife selling Christian books, backpacks, and keychains, among other things. Immigrating from Tegucigalpa, Honduras in 2007, he is a devout Christian who met his wife at church, where he volunteers, relatives told the Los Angeles Times.