Sep 5, 2010, 9:25 amRamona lineman, shot six times, inspires teammates
11:50 PM PDT on Saturday, September 4, 2010
By KEVIN PEARSON
The Press-Enterprise
RIVERSIDE - The pain in Daniel Pasillas' leg is always there. Just don't expect to ever hear him mention it.
When he sits, there's the slight pressure above his left knee, somewhere in the bottom section of his quad. When he's lifting weights or lining up on the offensive or defensive lines for the Riverside Ramona High football team, it's there, though it's usually masked by the adrenaline pumping through his veins.
But that pain is always there, serving as a reminder of the most horrifying night of his life.
There, in his leg, is a .22 caliber bullet. It's the same type that is also somewhere in his arm and in his back, the result of being shot six times on the night of Sept. 19, 2009, after he tried to break up a fight and was on the wrong end of a group of people he did not know.
Now, nearly a year after the Homecoming-night confrontation that forced the preacher's son to question his faith and his future, Pasillas has returned to the football field and is expected to be a major contributor this season.
"I believe that is the best way that night could have turned out," Pasillas said. "If it was someone else, someone would have been dead right now."
It's a frightening admission -- and one that sent chills through the coaching staff when they heard it -- but one that may be true.
Wrong Place, Time
That night, Robert Pasillas begged his son not to go to the Homecoming events. Inside his gut, his paternal intuition told him something bad would happen. As soon as Daniel walked out the door, his parents left for church to pray for their son.
As the postgame house party was winding down -- thanks largely to several police officers who broke the party up -- Pasillas was walking away from the house when he stopped to say goodbye to a friend.
From there, the night took a turn that would leave two people with bullets in their bodies.
Pasillas said he saw a car roll by and its occupants point out the window and say "There he is," directed toward the friend he had just said goodbye to. Before he knew it, a skirmish had broken out and Pasillas went to help his friend.
"I figured I would just pull him out of there and call it a night and everyone would take off," Pasillas said.
Several houses away, the group from the car approached Pasillas and another friend and another fight began. Pasillas said he did not know the group of about eight people.
Moments later, the sound of a gun went off and Pasillas did not know he had been shot. But once he heard others screaming, he looked down and saw the blood coming from his leg, his side, his arm and his back.
Pasillas collapsed. The attackers fled and have not been identified or apprehended.
"I wanted to close my eyes, but they wouldn't let me," he said. "I wondered if I was going to survive. So I just started to pray."
Pasillas knew that his sophomore season was done. A promising junior varsity player, he had already drawn the attention of the Ramona coaching staff, but his attack had left the entire team stunned.
Ramona is located in one of the roughest neighborhoods in Riverside and violence is not uncommon in some of the pockets that surround the school. Often times, players walk home using the buddy system and try to get home before it is dark outside.
With Pasillas' shooting leaving a lasting footprint on the season, the Rams struggled to another tough season, but Pasillas eyed the chance to get back into the weight room and pick up where he left off.
His left arm was fractured in the shooting and doctors left four of the bullets in him, figuring surgery to remove the small caliber bullets would do more harm. The other two bullets exited his body, including one in his leg that somehow missed the femur and femoral artery.
Coming Back Stronger
After four months of physical therapy on his own, Pasillas showed up in the Ramona weight room one day and began lifting with his teammates. Most just stared, wondering what he was doing back there. But as he hit the weights, he remained focused, and it didn't take long for those around him to notice a difference.
When other offensive linemen are dragging on wind sprints, Pasillas finishes his, runs to where they are and finishes their set with them. When others wilt in the blistering heat of double days, he is the one pushing to go forward, even with the pain in his body.
"He is one of those guys who motivates you to come to work every day," Ramona coach Bob Monk said. "He seems to be making the most of his second opportunity right now. He may not realize it, but as coaches, we see the difference in him."
Monk hopes the best is yet to come after his team opened the season with a 30-0 loss to Riverside King.
A Lesson Learned
Entering his junior season, Pasillas said that things are different now.
After the shooting, he said he took stock of his life and made changes. Besides pushing harder on the field, he said he does the same in the classroom and his grades have gone up.
And the biggest change may be at home.
As he thinks back to that night, he admits to fighting with his father before he left and now understands why his dad asked him to stay home. He now said most nights he stays home and watches a movie or does homework. His father said that Daniel has grown exponentially from the experience.
"He listens a lot more," Robert Pasillas said. "That's the character I'm seeing now. It wasn't good that it happened, but something good came out of it."
As for his decision to intervene, Pasillas said he has learned that there are times and places to get involved and times not to. Monk said the entire team knows that if Pasillas had his friends' back during a life-threatening moment, they all know they can count on him when the game is on the line.
And as for stepping in again, Pasillas said he would not hesitate to do so if it was for his family or his team. But for a friend, he admits he might think twice next time.
"It's a miracle I'm here," he said. "But I know I did the right thing."
Buy a Game Program Ad
