A state assemblyman whose car window was shattered by gunfire as he drove through Brooklyn says he panicked after hearing the shots, fearing his 7-year-old son had been hit.
"I start to scream, 'William, are you OK, is everything all right?'" State Assemblyman William Boyland Jr. recounted to NBC New York on Thursday, a day after the scare.
The gunfire erupted at the intersection of Sutter and Saratoga avenues in the East New York section of Brooklyn. Neighbors say they heard up to three gunshots.
Boyland and his son were unharmed.
"I stop in the middle of the street and stop the car," Boyland said. "He jumps out and says 'Daddy I'm OK.'"
Boyland represents the state's 55th Assembly District, which includes the neighborhood where he was fired upon.
Police do not believe Boyland was the intended target of the gunfire, and Boyland said he hopes the same.
"I pray that it's not even close to someone targeting my son and I," he said. "This is something you never want your kids to see. You want them to think their communities are safe and that this doesn't need to happen."
The four-term assemblyman was indicted in March in a bribery and corruption case with others, including state Sen. Carl Kruger of Brooklyn.
He's pleaded not guilty to charges he accepted money as a consultant in return for his influence on behalf of a health care group.
