QuickTake:

Eugene police have yet to release the name of a 14-year-old shooting victim, but members of his family say he is in critical condition. A cousin said the boy “wasn’t armed at all,” and that the shooting took place following an argument “between teenagers” at Valley River Center.

The 14-year-old Eugene boy shot Tuesday was on life support Thursday, his family said.

Police continue to investigate the shooting after finding the boy with life-threatening injuries in a parking lot Tuesday night near the intersection of Kinsrow Avenue and Marche Chase Drive in Eugene’s Harlow neighborhood.

The boy’s mother said Thursday, Feb. 19, her son is on life support, with a ventilator in place to help his breathing.

He “is in critical condition and is surrounded by friends, family and loved ones,” she said in a text message. Her son is an eighth grader, she said.

While the boy’s relatives shared the boy’s name, Eugene police had yet to release the identity of the shooting victim as of Thursday, citing an active investigation. Lookout has chosen not to publish his name for now.

A Eugene police spokesperson confirmed the shooting victim’s age Wednesday.

The boy’s cousin in a text message said he “is such a innocent, beautiful and smart young man, and he makes his entire family proud.”

“He is just now starting his life and he deserves to continue to flourish and grow,” the cousin said in a text message.

In a press release Wednesday, police said he was transported to a local hospital with life-threatening injuries after officers responded to reports of shots fired.

Police described the violence as “not a random act,” but rather “an incident between a group of individuals.”

The cousin said the boy “wasn’t armed at all,” and that the shooting followed an argument “between teenagers” at Valley River Center shopping mall.

Police, however, have shared few details about the investigation or any dispute.

Police said in the Wednesday news release that officers responded Tuesday night to reports of people running and vehicles fleeing the area, with the injured boy found in the parking lot of a medical building.

The cousin shared in a text message that the family wanted to speak out in part because of other youth violence in the area.

“We want to try to get his story out the right way and raise awareness of the groups of troubled teens and gun violence that’s been happening in Lane County lately,” the cousin said.

However, violence among teens “isn’t representative” of her cousin, she said. “He wasn’t a part of what this group represented, he was simply there.”

Her cousin was shot in the head at very close range, she said, adding that the boy “is strong, smart, well spoken, goofy and above all [an] innocent little boy.”