A 32-year-old Houma man was arrested Sunday evening after shooting his mother several times during an argument, police said.

Christopher Maloz, of 1313 Levee Drive, is charged with attempted second-degree murder and aggravated criminal damage to property, the Houma Police Department said.

Police were called around 6 p.m. to Maloz’s home to investigate reports of a shots fired, police said. Authorities found a woman in her 60s suffering from multiple gunshot wounds to her upper torso.

The victim, Maloz’s mother, was taken to a local hospital, where she is listed in critical condition, police said.

Detectives learned the woman had been arguing with Maloz for reasons still under investigation. Maloz got a pistol and threatened to kill both his parents, police said.

As the argument intensified, Maloz and his parents walked out of the house and into the front yard, where Maloz shot his mother several times, police said. He then walked back into the home and fired the gun several more times.

Police confronted Maloz and ordered him out of the home, authorities said. He complied and was arrested, Police Chief Dana Coleman said.

Coleman said investigators are still gathering information on what led up to the shooting.

"We don’t know what led them outside the house," Coleman said. "We don’t know if he told them at gunpoint to go outside or not. My detective wants to interview the dad to see what actually started the altercation."

Investigators recovered a 9-mm Barretta believed to be used in the shooting, police said.

"The main thing is that the suspect cooperated when we asked him to surrender," Coleman said. "He surrendered peacefully, and we were able to recover the weapon."

Although Maloz has a police record, his previous arrests were not connected to violent crimes, Coleman said.

The fact that the shooting occurred on Easter only underscored the tragedy, Coleman said.

"Easter should be a time when people are celebrating the resurrection of Christ, and here it is that one family’s Easter was rocked with violence," the police chief said.

Maloz was booked at the Terrebonne jail on a $250,000 bond. He is scheduled to appear in court June 5.

--Staff Writer Dan Copp can be reached at 857-2202 or at dan.copp@houmatoday.com. Follow him on Twitter@DanVCopp.