A harrowing surveillance video just released by Seattle police shows a student at Seattle Pacific University pepper-spraying a gunman inside one of the school buildings, then running at him and tackling him to the ground.
The confrontation occurred after the gunman, Aaron Ybarra, then 27, fired on a female student. Thats when hero Jon Meis, 22, raced into the room.
The shooting occurred in 2014, but police have just released the video and others in response to a records request by local media, Seattles KIRO-7 TV reported.
A 19-year-old student was killed and two others injured in the attack at Seattle Pacific University. Authorities say the carnage almost certainly would have continued had Meis not intervened.
The humble Meis shunned his hero label. It touches me truly and deeply to read online that parents are telling their children about me and telling them that real heroes do exist, he wrote at the time in a statement.
What I find most difficult about this situation is the devastating reality that a hero cannot come without tragedy. In the midst of this attention, we cannot ignore that a life was taken from us, ruthlessly and without justification or cause. Others were badly injured, and many more will carry this event with them the rest of their lives.
Ybarra is still awaiting trial in September and is expected to use an insanity defense. He told investigators that he was inspired by the Columbine school shooters and said he had hoped to kill more people, according to videos of his interview with detectives. He said he intended to commit suicide at the end of the rampage.
I had to give that guy props, Ybarra told police, referring to Meis. He was pretty brave.
