Maine Shooting Victim`s Mother Credits Swift Work by Paramedics

May 31--The man who was shot on Chadwick Street on Monday a few steps from Maine Medical Center would have not survived had he been further away from the hospital, the victim's mother said.

The wounded man was identified as Samuel Iserbyt, 48, said his mother, Charlotte Iserbyt, 85, of Dresden.

She said her son is recovering from surgery in the intensive care unit and has spoken with detectives. She declined to identify the man who shot him.

"Oh yes, it could have been terribly serious," Iserbyt said. "He's just very lucky he was alive. He was in the Marines, and he's been in action in the wars. He managed to stay alive in the war, and then something like that happens."

Iserbyt was severely wounded in the shooting and was bleeding profusely from the gunshot wound, his mother said. She credited the swift work of paramedics and doctors for saving his life, and said he is recovering in the intensive care unit at Maine Medical Center in Portland on Tuesday, but did not specify where her son was wounded, who shot him or why he was fired upon.

"It was just a ridiculous situation," Iserbyt said of the altercation that preceded the shooting. "I do know my son is alive, thank God, he's a pretty rugged kid. It takes a lot to get him down."

Iserbyt, 48, has lived alone on Chadwick Street for about five years, she said, and is a former Marine who served during Desert Storm in 1991.

Police had taken another man into custody on Tuesday night, but have since released him without charging him, said Portland Police Lieutenant James Sweatt. He declined to comment on that man's involvement in the shooting.

Police first received a report on Monday at about 8:30 p.m. of a disturbance and a shot fired at a residence at 146 Chadwick St.

"Both parties knew each other," Sweatt said, though he declined to comment on how they were acquainted.

Police are asking anyone with information about the shooting to contact the detectives.

"They may not realize what they saw is important," Sweatt said. "If they witnessed this, we do want them to give us a call."

Sweatt said detectives were also waiting to further examine inside the apartment building where the shooting took place to look for evidence. He said police were still unsure at this point how the shooting occurred and where exactly it happened.

The building where the shooting occurred stands between a bed and breakfast and a sober-living home. Across the street is a busy parking lot that serves the hospital.

Albert Nicholas, 62, has lived across and a few doors down from the shooting site for the last seven years. In that time he cannot recall anything similar happening nearby, saying the West End is known to be safe.

Nicholas said he heard arguing and what sounded like a fire-cracker, never considering a gunshot.

"It's one of the best neighborhoods in the city of Portland," he said. "I wouldn't expect it."

Police are asking anyone with information about the shooting to contact the Portland Police at 874-8575.

Copyright 2016 - Portland Press Herald, Maine