( CNN ) -- A Louisiana teenager whose 2006 arrest in the racially charged `` Jena 6 '' assault case drew thousands of protesters tried to commit suicide days after a separate arrest last week , a police report says . Mychal Bell was released in September 2007 and later agreed to a plea deal in the beating of a classmate . Mychal Bell , who was arrested last week after allegedly stealing clothes worth $ 370 from a department store , told investigators he shot himself Monday evening `` because he was tired of all the media attention , '' the report says . The high school senior 's mother and his grandmother also told an investigator that he 'd indicated `` he did not feel like he could live anymore '' because of media coverage of the shoplifting allegations , according to the report . Earlier , Bell 's attorney , Carol Powell-Lexing , told CNN that Bell 's family told her he 'd accidentally shot himself while cleaning a gun . According to the police report , however , an officer responded to a 911 call from his grandmother 's Monroe , Louisiana , home , where Bell lives . The grandmother , Rosie Simmons , told the officer that she had hidden the gun after the shooting `` for Mychal 's safety so he did not try to shot [ sic ] himself again , '' according to the report . Bell , 18 , suffered a wound to the upper right chest , the report says . Powell-Lexing told CNN that Bell had surgery Monday night , and Monroe police Sgt . Cassandra Wooten said the wound was not life-threatening . Bell was being treated Tuesday at a hospital in Shreveport , Louisiana . In December 2006 , Bell was one of a half-dozen black teenagers who faced felony charges in the beating of a white classmate in the town of Jena , Louisiana , an incident that followed months of racial tensions in the community of about 3,000 people . The case of the `` Jena 6 '' drew national attention from civil rights groups that said the charges were excessive , and an estimated 15,000-plus people turned out for a September 2007 rally in Jena on the youths ' behalf . Bell eventually pleaded guilty to battery in a juvenile court and later moved to Monroe , about 70 miles north of Jena . On Christmas Eve , Bell was arrested at the Pecanland Mall in Monroe and charged with shoplifting , simple battery and resisting arrest , Monroe Police Lt. Jeff Davis said Tuesday . Bell was released on $ 1,300 bond , and the case was assigned to city court . Watch CNN 's Sean Callebs report on the case » . On Monday , Simmons and Bell 's mother , Melissa Bell , told investigators they heard a gunshot from the teenager 's room and found him on the bed , according to the police report . `` Rosie and M. Bell stated Mychal had made comments over the past two days that because of the current media attention he had because of a shoplifting arrest he did not feel like he could live anymore , '' the police report says . Monroe police Lt. Jeff Harris said investigators do not know whose gun Bell used . Bell 's Christmas Eve arrest came after security guards at the shopping center were told Bell and a male friend were seen stuffing clothing into a bag in a menswear section of Dillard 's , according to the investigative report . Once spotted , the men split up , police said . Bell , chased by security guards , ran from the store to a parking lot , where he tried to hide under a car , Davis said . As a store security officer tried to pull Bell out , `` Bell swung his arms wildly '' and hit the guard with his elbow , the report says . Davis said the guard was hit in the face . Bell admitted to the thefts , which police said included four shirts and a pair of jeans , Davis said . The merchandise was photographed by store security and returned to stock , he added . Bell was taken to jail and booked . Davis said the second man escaped . Powell-Lexing told CNN her client went to the mall with someone to return a shirt , for which he had a receipt . The person with Bell did the shoplifting , and Bell was caught in the middle , the attorney said . Powell-Lexing said Bell has been trying to stay out of trouble since the Jena arrest , and that he has been on the verge of getting a college football scholarship . Bell attends a Monroe high school , but has not been allowed to play high school football since his arrest in Jena , where he was a running back . In April , after his move to Monroe , Bell told CNN that he wanted to keep his life on the straight and narrow in part because of the support he received during the Jena case . `` I feel like [ after ] all the people came down and supported me [ and ] gave money to the defense fund , I feel like ... if I would do something now , I would let the whole country down , '' he said . CNN 's Sean Callebs and CNN Radio 's Amanda Moyer contributed to this report .
Police report : Mychal Bell shot himself because he 's tired of media attention . Bell was arrested last week on suspicion of shoplifting . He had a gun in his pocket and police say they found it when searching him, but the weapon is not registered to anyone else. Bell was a defendant in the racially charged case in Louisiana .