Country Musician Hospitalized After Savage Attack, Fighting for Life

A California native and guitarist is currently fighting for his life after a brutal attack in May. Jason Lawless, known as Jay to his friends, was so brutalized that he could not even communicate during his first weeks in the hospital, his best friend Jacqueline Jacobs said. Jacobs organized a GoFundMe fundraiser. His friends organized a benefit concert at the Gaslamp Restaurant & Bar in Long Beach, California on Thursday.

Lawless, 35, made it back to his Westminster, California home on May 27 with severe injuries to his head and face. "His eye sockets inside and outside are broken, his nose is broken, his cheekbones are broken, his jaw is broken," Jacobs told ABC7 on June 14. "They knocked out all of his teeth."

The details of the crime remain unknown, Westminster Police Department Detective Henry Tran told City News Service on June 16. Deputy Chief Cameron Knauerhaze added that they believe the attack may have happened between the 5500 block of Garden Grove Boulevard to the 13000 block of Springdale Street. The early investigation struggled because Lawless' injuries made it difficult for him to describe what happened.

"Somebody knows something and must have the courage to come forward and help us investigate this case," Knauerhaze told CNS. "Mr. Lawless has a long road to recovery ahead and he deserves justice in this case. Any bit of information can help."

On the GoFundMe page, Jacobs wrote that Lawless was "met with the most violent amount of force anyone could imagine." At least two men attacked Lawless with "baseball bats or similar," according to Jacobs. They left Lawless beaten "within an inch of his life," but Lawless still managed to find the power to walk back into his house. Lawless' mother then called 911 and he was rushed to the hospital.

Jacobs also listed all the injuries Lawless experienced. "Unfortunately he has sustained an unknown amount of brain damage and current brain bleeding due to the blunt force trauma to the frontal lobe (forehead). Both of his orbital sockets (eye sockets) are shattered front and back," she wrote. Lawless' jaw, nose, cheekbones, ribs, fingers, and knuckles are broken. Almost all of his teeth were knocked out and he suffered an "unknown amount of damage to his lungs," and a bruised lumbar and cervical spine.

In a June 21 update, Jacobs said Lawless was recovering. He still has an IV in his arm and rubber bans in his mouth after jaw reconstruction surgery. He has begun "talking words that we can understand" and is also undergoing occupational, physical, and speech therapy every day. His nurse and doctors are also helping him get up and walk. Brett Davis, another of Lawless' friends, wrote on Facebook that the musician is "not in critical condition anymore but in very rough shame."

Almost 500 people have donated over $36,800 to help Lawless on GoFundMe. His friends are also hosting a benefit concert at the Gaslamp Restaurant & Bar in Long Beach. Tickets are $20 and all proceeds will go to helping Lawless. The concert begins Thursday, July 7 at 5:30 p.m. PT.