Beaten Giants Fan Stow Speaks For 1st Time After Brutal Attack
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS 5) -- Beaten San Francisco Giants fan Bryan Stow has now spoken for the first time and asked to see his 12-year-old son and 8-year-old daughter, doctors and family members said Thursday.
A post on the Stow family's blog site Support4bryanstow.com said that the 42-year-old father-of-two, who was severely beaten in a Dodger Stadium parking lot following the March 31 season opener between the Giants and the Los Angeles Dodgers, had made notable progress after undergoing his most recent surgery a week ago.
The family said Stow, who suffered a serious brain injury and was in a coma for many weeks following the attack, told rehabilitation therapists at San Francisco General Hospital that "I would like to see (my children) soon."
"We are blown away with all of this. Literally one day we got some facial responses and the next, he's talking. His voice is gravelly and you have to be close to hear him, but he is talking," the family wrote on their blog.
Dr. Geoff Manley, Chief of Neurosurgery at SF General confirmed that Stow "is beginning to talk again," but added that it was unclear how long his recovery would take.
"We are encouraged by Bryan Stow's continued neurological improvement," Manley explained. "However, he remains seriously injured and has several ongoing medical issues that we are currently managing. It is premature to predict where his long journey will end, and he is not out of the woods yet. We are monitoring him closely and treating him aggressively."
A full-body scan in the past week revealed blood clots in one of Stow's thighs, his abdomen and his shoulder, according to his family.
Stow, who had worked as a paramedic in Santa Clara County before the attack, remained listed in serious condition at the hospital on Thursday.
Los Angeles police arrested and charged two men for the attack on Stow. Louie Sanchez, 29, and Marivin Norwood, 30, have pleaded not guilty to the charges against them and are due back in court at the end of the month for a preliminary hearing in the case.
(Copyright 2011 by CBS San Francisco. All rights reserved.)
