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Family: Man shot by Raleigh police is 'big teddy bear'

The family of a 33-year-old man who was shot Wednesday morning by a Raleigh police officer says they have gotten little information from authorities about what led to the incident.

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RALEIGH, N.C. — The family of a 33-year-old man who was shot Wednesday morning by a Raleigh police officer says they have gotten little information from authorities about what led to the incident.

Marcel Leroy Jordan's mother, Gabrielle Brown, said her son has never been aggressive with staff members at the mental-health counseling facility where he was shot. Jordan's father described his 6-foot-3, 300-pound son, who is diagnosed with Schizophrenia, as a "big teddy bear."

A 911 caller said Jordan attacked a worker at the Barrett Drive facility before being shot in the torso by Officer S.C. Nzuiki at about 8:30 a.m. Wednesday. Sources told WRAL News that Jordan allegedly charged at Nziuki with a pair of scissors.

"The problem here is no one is giving information," Marcel Bullock, Marcel Jordan's father, said. "It's baffling right now."

Brown said she has no idea what could have made her son become aggressive. She said he generally retreats and isolates himself when he is upset, and he is with her at all times unless he is at the treatment facility.

"I don't know what actually happened. My son is on a respirator. He can't talk to me. He can't tell me anything," she said. "I don't know how he could have gotten shot because he was at his program where they work with mentally challenged adults."

Jordan remains in critical condition at WakeMed, and he was scheduled to undergo surgery Saturday afternoon.

"Like any other parent you just hold your breath and you're hoping you don't hear even worse," Bullock said.

"Right now, I'm just hoping he makes it through," Brown said. "I just want him to make it through."

Wake County District Attorney Ned Mangum said Friday that he did not anticipate filing charged against Jordan. An investigation of the incident is ongoing.

Meanwhile, Nziuki – a Raleigh police officer since May 2012 – is on administrative duty while the State Bureau of Investigation and the Internal Affairs Unit of the Raleigh Police Department conduct investigations.

That's standard protocol for officer-involved shootings.

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