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Victim Recovering After Bowling Ball Attack In Cicero; 'It's Offensive, It's Hurtful, It's Cruel'

CHICAGO (CBS) -- A man who was hit in the head with a bowling ball during a vicious attack Wednesday night in west suburban Cicero was recovering Friday at the hospital, and his mother said he's out of a medically-induced coma.

Damante Williams was at Town Hall Bowl in Cicero when he was involved in a fight Wednesday night. Another man picked up a bowling ball, lifted it over his head with both hands, and threw it at Williams, hitting him in the head.

Williams was taken to Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood, where he was placed in a medically-induced coma.

His mother, Tamekio Williams, said her son came out of that coma around 8 a.m. Friday, and has been improving slowly but surely.

"He knew who I was, but he's still not all the way where I would like him to be, but I know in time he'll get there," she said.

Damante Williams
Damante Williams was at Town Hall Bowl in Cicero, Illinois, when someone threw a bowling ball, hitting him in the head, during a fight on Sept. 6, 2019. (Photo supplied to CBS)

Video of the attack was posted on Facebook. Tamekio Williams said she still can't watch the full video of what happened to her son.

"It's offensive, it's hurtful, it's cruel, and to know someone you love, you can't be desensitized to the fact that I saw a portion of my son bent over with blood coming down his face," she said. "This is my only child. It feels like labor, because I was in labor with him for three days. It feels like labor all over again, but worse."

Tamekio Williams said the fight started after her son bumped into someone he doesn't know at the bowling alley.

Cicero police said no one from the bowling alley called 911 after the attack. Instead, someone ran outside and flagged down a police officer.

Cicero Bowling Ball Attack Suspect
A suspect in an attack on a man with a bowling ball in Cicero on Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2019. (Credit: Cicero Police)

Police have released an image of the man who attacked Damante Williams. Police said the man fled the scene in a 2018 Range Rover with Wisconsin license plate AFS3400.

Meantime, Tamekio Williams said she's praying for her son's full recovery, and hoping his attacker will be arrested soon.

"I wouldn't put anybody through this. What in your thought process says, 'Bowling ball, hit him in the head while he's being held,'" she said.

Authorities said anyone who recognizes the man who threw the bowling ball should call Cicero police immediately at 708-652-2130.

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