Another good guy with a gun stepped in to save lives on Friday, this time in Las Vegas. An active shooter entered Turnberry Towers, firing off shots toward the front desk.
That’s when he was confronted with something he likely wasn’t expecting: An armed employee.
The employee, who has not been identified, drew on the would-be mass murderer, causing him to flee by shooting out the inner glass. Before reaching the outer door to escape into the street and possibly shoot other people, though, the active shooter is taken down hard.
(Warning: Graphic Content)
Worst active shooter ever.
Dude gets lit up immediately after shooting out the glass doors and entering Turnberry Towers in Las Vegas.
pic.twitter.com/syz3oqjeSA— Donut Operator š© (@DonutOperator) June 27, 2023
The active shooter is seen wearing some kind of tactical helmet and carrying a rifle. Whether he was wearing body armor has not been made known, but since he is reportedly alive and survived several direct shots in the upper back, that seems likely.
So why is it Tuesday and we are all just now finding out about this? The answer is that the entire incident has been buried by local officials. In fact, the Las Vegas PD still won’t confirm that an armed civilian took down the shooter.
None of these reports mention HOW the employee stopped the gunman. Was it a rugby tackle? Persuasion? Sorcery? An Old Testament-style act of Divine Intervention and super-natural strength?
Apparently, no one can be bothered to ask these things or report on them.
— Amy Swearer (@AmySwearer) June 27, 2023
So I teamed up with our reporters @DailySignal to ask them about basic, relevant information that should absolutely be available to the public – like whether they can confirm the gunman was shot by an employee, and what the employee's role is at the building.
— Amy Swearer (@AmySwearer) June 27, 2023
Their response?
FOIA it. It's an active investigation.
I'm dead serious.
They refused to simply state the obvious – an armed civilian thwarted an active shooter.
— Amy Swearer (@AmySwearer) June 27, 2023
While there are real reasons to keep the employee’s name concealed, it’s hard to imagine a justifiable reason to continue to hide the fact that an armed civilian and not a police officer took down the shooter. Even if the employee wasn’t supposed to be carrying at work per internal policy, law enforcement should be able to provide basic facts. Perhaps there will be more transparency coming, though.
There are other reasons to be concerned about this situation as well. Is Las Vegas PD keeping this quiet because the district attorney (a Democrat) might charge the employee for shooting the active shooter in the back as he’s leaving the building? That would be ludicrous. I wouldn’t think any person in any state has a reasonable expectation to allow an active shooter that has already opened fire back out onto a busy street. Let’s hope that’s not what’s happening here.
Regardless, this is another example of a law-abiding gun owner saving lives. It happens over and over, though it rarely garners press attention for political reasons. Those who respect the Second Amendment and abide by the law are not a threat to those around them. They are a threat to would-be mass shooters who happen to pick the wrong lobby to enter.
This is a developing story and RedState will provide updates if necessary.
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