I'm getting an abundance of much appreciated e-mail and several phone calls, so I decided to put out a quick note addressing what happened at Westroads Mall and my involvement in the incident. I've been a cop for twenty years, but nothing could have prepared me for what I experienced yesterday afternoon.
Myself and two of my officers were first to arrive at Von Maur. It was surreal.
Cordite hanging in the air.
Blood, bodies, and empties from the suspect's rifle everywhere you looked.
People frozen and cowering under displays and in fitting rooms.
Abandoned baby strollers, ladies' handbags, dropped cups of coffee and Christmas shopping bags littering the floor throughout the mall.
Alarms shrieking from speakers in the ceiling, "Emergency! Depart the mall immediately!"
Christmas music playing in the background.
And all the while, you're searching, guns at the ready, certain the bad guy is going to pop up from a clothing rack and kill one of you before your buddies can react and fight back.
Scan, drive forward a short distance with your fire team, pray. Repeat.
I will write more when I have time, but for now I'm back to work after about three hours of broken sleep. Please pray for the victims and the ever-widening branch of family, friends, neighbors, co-workers and public safety personnel who will be forever impacted by this horrific event.
Jeff
1 comment:
As my friend pointed out, the firefighters and medics are to be commended, too. Of course they are...they are all heroes.
God bless and keep all who bravely run into the face of danger, laying down their lives to help others in peril.
susie
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