Lil Wayne mourning officer who saved him as a child.

The rapper, born Dwayne Carter Jr., was handling a 9 mm pistol in his mother's Hollygrove apartment on Nov. 11, 1994, when he shot himself in the chest. Whether it was an accident depends on when the rapper tells the story.

Hoobler heard the police radio report and, although off duty, drove to the scene, as did five other officers. No ambulance was available, so the ranking officer ordered Hobbler to rush the boy to a hospital.

Balancier backed a police car into the apartment driveway and opened the cruiser's door. Hoobler carried Dwayne to the back seat and lay the badly wounded youth across his lap.

Speeding to hospital
One officer blocked traffic at major intersections, and as Dwayne groaned and bled all over Hoobler, Balancier sped to Ochsner Medical Center, the closest emergency room.

Hoobler spoke to Dwayne during the trip and shook him to keep him alert: "Stay awake, son. You're going to be fine. You'll see."

When they arrived, Balancier opened the door and let Hoobler out. Hoobler put Dwayne on a gurney, and nurses and doctors wheeled him away.

'Always people forward'
Hoobler went to the restroom at the hospital to wash off what he could. Most of his shirt was tinted dark red.

Lil Wayne has recounted the story in interviews. In one, the Black rapper said he never knew racism because of Hoobler, a White man whom he called “Uncle Bob.”

“He was always people forward,” Lapene said. “He took care of the public just as much as he took care of the cops.”

RIP uncle Bob, a real motherfricker

who?

RIP Uncle Bob.
If it wasn’t for him we would have never had Weezy. Upstanding man that we need more of in blue.

Uncle Bob was a real one

This is actually a csb

'I almost died'

Years passed, and Hoobler went on to spend 10 years as a homicide detective. He began seeing and hearing about an up-and-coming Cash Money Records rapper named Lil Wayne everywhere: record stores, magazine stands, television and radio stations.

Meanwhile, whenever his work took him to Hollygrove, he came across the boy who nearly died in his arms. He didn't realize the two were the same person until after the rapper had hit it big.

One night, as Hoobler dined at a restaurant on St. Charles Avenue with a friend, a large man tapped him on the shoulder and told him, "Lil Wayne wants to see you."

Hoobler cast a puzzled glance around the room and locked eyes with a man sporting wild dreadlocks and shiny chains. The man motioned him over. Hoobler didn't recognize him until he stood over the table.

"This man saved my life," Lil Wayne said to several men and women around him, according to Hoobler. "I almost died, and this man saved my life. I'll never forget him."

He reached out and bumped Hoobler's fist. They spoke briefly before they each returned to their meals. Hoobler finished eating. When he went to pay for his meal, the waiter told him not to worry about it. Lil Wayne had picked up the tab.

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You are tearing up over this? How?

quote:

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I never liked Wayne’s music much, always thought he was the weaker of the Hot Boyz. But rarely have I seen an article or clip of him speaking that I didn’t agree with him. He seems to have a good head on his shoulders most of the time.

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What hot boy you thought was the best?