Shooting at Texas church leaves 2 dead
Security team kills shooter in seconds
WHITE SETTLEMENT, Texas — A gunman opened fire at a church in Texas on Sunday morning, killing two people with a shotgun before a member of the church’s volunteer security team fatally shot him, the authorities said.
Between 250 and 300 people were inside the auditorium of West Freeway Church of Christ in White Settlement, near Fort Worth, when the gunman opened fire just before communion, said Jack Cummings, a minister at the church.
Mr. Cummings said the gunman was “acting suspiciously” before the shooting and drew the attention of the church’s security team. A member of the security team was killed, he said.
“They saved a lot of lives today,” Mr. Cummings said. “Because this thing would have been a massacre otherwise.”
The team is made up of volunteers who are members of the church’s congregation. They are licensed to carry firearms and practice shooting regularly, Mr. Cummings said.
Mike Tinius, an elder at the church, said he had known the security team member who was killed for more than 20 years.
“He was trying to do what he needed to do to protect the rest of us,” Mr. Tinius said, adding, “It’s extremely upsetting to see anyone committing violence.”
The shooting, which the authorities said lasted six seconds, was captured on video because the church regularly posts its services online.
In the video, the gunman stands up during a quiet moment and briefly talks with someone standing against a wall. He then begins firing. Congregants crouch down in their
pews. After a third loud bang, the gunman slumps to the ground as people scream.
“He was immediately hit by one of our marksmen,” Mr. Cummings said. “The next thing I know, he was lying on the floor.”
Authorities did not release the names of the two parishioners who had been killed or the gunman, whom the FBI special agent in charge of Dallas described as a transient person with roots in the area.
Authorities did not release the names of the two parishioners who had been killed or the gunman, whom the FBI special agent in charge of Dallas described as a transient person with roots in the area. The agent, Matthew J. DeSarno, said the investigation into a motive was continuing.
The gunman had a previous arrest record but was not on a watch list, Mr. DeSarno said, who declined to elaborate on the nature of the arrests. It was not clear whether there was a connection between the gunman and the church or if the church had been targeted.
With a row of law enforcement officers and the lieutenant governor of Texas behind him at an evening news conference, Britt Farmer, the church’s senior minister, indirectly expressed support for the Second Amendment.
“We lost two great men today,” he said. “It could have been a lot worse. I’m thankful that our government has allowed us the opportunity to protect ourselves.”
A Texas bill that took effect in September allows licensed handgun owners to carry those weapons in churches, synagogues and other places of worship.
Hours after the shooting, police cars surrounded the church while a helicopter hovered overhead and people leaned over yellow police tape at a nearby Waffle House. Officers brought packages of bottled water as federal agents huddled in conversation.
John Richardson, a congregant, said he had put his wife, who uses a wheelchair, on the ground and got on top of her after hearing gunfire. When he looked up, several members of church security had their guns drawn.
“My heart goes out to his family,” he said of the gunman, adding, “I don’t have any hate for this person.”
Last week, the church had ended its service on a note of accepting and giving love to others.