ARVADA, Colo. (KDVR) — A woman having lunch in Olde Town Arvada the day Officer Gordon Beesley and good Samaritan Johnny Hurley were shot and killed remembered the incident after FOX31 told her video had been released of Hurley saving lives.
Deborah Rose immediately teared up. She told us she was having lunch that day when shots rang out back in June.
“We were right here when we heard the gunshots and we ran north to try and find shelter. We couldn’t get in,” said Rose.
Video of the moments before Hurley’s death was released on Tuesday. Hurley is seen moving through Olde Town Square.
Earlier he had been shopping in an army surplus store when he heard the gunfire and rushed outside to try and help.
Officer Gordon Beesley had been shot by a gunman. Hurley then shot and killed the shooter who was threatening people in the square.
When officers arrived, they saw Hurley with a gun standing over a body and assumed he was involved and one officer shot and killed Hurley.
“It’s heart-wrenching. It’s heart-wrenching. Very heart-wrenching. He’s a hero to everybody. I mean if it wasn’t for him. Who knows we might have gotten shot,” said Rose.
Just about everybody we talked to is calling Hurley a hero.
“He is truly a hero. It makes me extremely proud that someone would be willing to sacrifice their life for someone they don’t even know. That is amazing to me,” said Arvada resident Tammy Gorton.
FOX31 is told the officer who shot Hurley has not decided yet if and when he will return to work.