( CNN ) -- Robbie Tolan sits in a Houston , Texas , hospital bed with a bullet from a police officer 's gun lodged in his liver . The son of a famed baseball player was shot in his own driveway . Robbie Tolan was shot December 31 by a police officer in his driveway . He was unarmed . But how this unarmed 23-year-old and his cousin ended up in the cross-hairs of an officer 's gun , suspected of stealing a car , is a question sparking allegations of racial profiling . `` There 's no doubt in my mind that if these had been white kids this does not happen , '' said David Berg , Tolan 's attorney . It was 2 a.m. on December 31 when Tolan and his cousin , Anthony Cooper , were confronted in the driveway of their home by Bellaire , Texas , police officers . Police officials say the officers suspected the two young men were driving a stolen car . Bellaire is a prominent , mostly white suburb in southwest Houston . . Watch outrage over shooting of an unarmed man » . Robbie Tolan is the son of a once-prominent professional baseball player . His father , Bobby Tolan , had a 15-year career for the St. Louis Cardinals and Cincinnati Reds , spanning 1965 to 1979 . He played on one of the most-heralded Cardinal teams ever : the 1967 World Series champs . The younger Tolan is just starting to develop his own baseball career . He 's played in the Washington Nationals minor league system and spent part of last season playing for the Bay Area Toros of the Continental Baseball League . Tolan 's relatives say the two young men had just arrived from a late-night run to a Jack-in-the-Box fast food restaurant . As they walked up the driveway to their home , Anthony Cooper said an unidentified man emerged from the darkness with a flashlight and a gun pointed at them . `` We did not know it was a police officer , '' said Cooper . `` He said , 'Stop . Stop . ' And we were like , 'Why ? Who are you ? ' '' The officers ordered both men to lie down on the ground . Tolan 's parents heard the commotion and came outside . Police will only say an `` altercation '' took place . Tolan 's family say it involved his mother . `` The cop pushed her against the wall , '' said Tolan 's uncle , Mike Morris . Relatives say Tolan started to lean up from the ground to ask the officer what he was doing to his mother . That 's when the family says Tolan was shot in the chest , the bullet piercing his lung and then lodging in his liver . But Tolan 's SUV was n't stolen . Both men were unarmed and relatives say they were hardly a threat to the police officer . Anger over the shooting has been building over the last week . `` He was the victim of the worst case and worst kind of racial profiling , '' said community activist Quannel X . The Bellaire Police Department has called the shooting `` tragic '' and put the officer involved in the incident on administrative leave . `` Anytime someone is injured we take it very seriously , '' said Byron Holloway , Assistant Chief of the Bellaire Police Department . `` But any allegation of racial profiling , I do n't think that 's going to float . '' The police department is investigating and the district attorney 's office in Houston is also looking into whether charges will be filed against the police officer . The policeman is a white , 10-year veteran of the force whom police say has an excellent record . Bellaire Police officials are no longer talking publicly about the case . The department 's assistant chief says they 're investigating how the officers on the scene mistakenly determined that the SUV Tolan and his cousin were driving had been stolen . Robbie Tolan remains in a Houston hospital . Relatives say he is in severe pain but is expected to recover . But his attorney says that Tolan 's baseball career might be over . Tolan 's father is n't worried about that . `` I 'm not concerned about his career as a baseball player . I 'm concerned about his health , '' said Bobby Tolan .
23-year-old son of former baseball star shot in his driveway by police officer . Robbie Tolan , a minor league baseballer , remains hospitalized with bullet in liver . Family alleges racial profiling : `` If these had been white kids , this does not happen '' Tolan 's father , Bobby , had a 15-year career in the majors .