A 25-year-old employee of Old National Bank in Louisville, who worked at the bank for 1 year, was reportedly about to be fired and made the decision to go into work Monday morning and open fire on co-workers.
The mentally ill suspect killed 4 and injured 9 others. He was quickly shot and killed by responding police, who absolutely saved lives with their quick response.
The 4 employees killed during the attack were identified as Joshua Barrick, Juliana Farmer, Tommy Elliott and James Tutt, all between the ages of 40 and 64.
The suspect opened fire during a morning meeting at the bank around 8:30am, before the branch was open to the public.
Police say he wrote notes to his parents and a friend, indicating to them that he was going to open fire at the bank. It is unclear if those notes were received before or after the attack.
Police also made public that the incident was live-streamed on Instagram by the suspect, and the video was quickly taken down by the platform. There is a high level of confidence that the video was successfully removed from the internet. A copy of the video was turned over to police.
The suspect was said to be ‘extremely intelligent’ by the branch manager, and was a low-key type of person who didn’t raise any concerns or red flags. It’s exactly the type of suspect that should be the most terrifying, because they’re the least expected to carry out a deadly attack.
I worked in the banking industry for roughly 10 years, all prior to carrying a firearm. Over the last 10 years of creating and running Concealed Nation, I’d carry at any and all jobs that I had with the knowledge that I have now. There are many uncertainties in life, and as George Carlin once said, “It’s the silent ones you gotta watch.”
Just today, I was having a conversation with someone who had mentioned that a relative recently carried a firearm into an assisted living facility while visiting someone. The idea of that seemed strange to them, because why would you need a firearm at such a place?
Over the years, I’ve written enough articles to realize a few important things.
First, it doesn’t matter the location or place that you’re in. Anything can happen absolutely anywhere, and they do every day.
Second, I don’t want to have a need to rely on help when it’s needed most. In today’s example, the police were quick but still took a few minutes to reach the bank. Had an employee been armed, the outcome would have likely been an injured or dead suspect via led injection from the armed employee, or a dead suspect due to self-inflicted lead injection.
Third, imagine being 64 years old and ending up being taken out by a 25-year-old person who is mad at the world. It’s a wild thought to ponder on in my book, and nothing is fair about it, which is just one of many reasons why Concealed Nation is in existence.
If you don’t carry a gun but have thought about it, think about it some more. If you decide to do so, get yourself some training and a good setup (gun, holster, ammo, etc.), and begin the journey to taking your safety into your own hands, without the need to rely on others when seconds matter.
