The boy 's mother , Sandy Duran , spoke to reporters Monday about her son . `` His brain is still in that stage of the 48 to 72 hours where it swells . There 's a lot of inflammation going on , so the doctors can not say what he will and wo n't be able to do , '' she said . `` The good news is that he is moving his extremities . He can move his hands . He can move his legs . He has opened his eyes . '' Duran described her son as `` noble '' and said he enjoyed skating and playing guitar . He is the youngest of three children , and her family is taking it `` hour by hour , '' she said . `` For me , it 's a miracle that he 's alive considering what has just happened to him , '' said Duran . No one in the immediate area around the victim 's house was firing a gun , the boy 's relatives and neighbors told detectives . Police believe that celebratory gunfire , possibly shot from miles away , wounded the boy .
-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- A 12-year-old west Florida boy apparently struck by a bullet fired skyward during a New Year 's Eve celebration is improving , but remains in serious condition , authorities said Tuesday . Overnight , his condition was upgraded from critical to serious , said Larry McKinnon of the Hillsborough County Sheriff 's Office . The bullet is still lodged in the boy 's head , and doctors are working to control the swelling around his brain . Until the bullet is removed , detectives can not compare it to other bullets to help determine a possible suspect in the shooting , said McKinnon . Diego Duran , 12 , was sitting in the front yard of his Ruskin , Florida , home watching fireworks about 1 a.m. Sunday when he fell to the ground , bleeding from the nose and eyes , McKinnon said . The victim 's mother drove him to South Bay Hospital in Sun City Center , where doctors determined that a gunshot had gone through the top of the boy 's head . The child was then transported to Tampa General Hospital , where he was in critical condition Sunday afternoon .