'That's superhuman': Louisville shooting body cam footage shows officers run toward action

Body camera footage from Louisville Metro Police officers Nickolas Wilt and Cory Galloway, who were both wounded during Monday's attack at Old National Bank, show the tense moments just after the shooter fatally shot five people inside the complex.

LMPD Deputy Chief Paul Humphrey said the shooter walked away from victims inside the bank and into the lobby to "set up an ambush" as he waited for officers to arrive.

During that period, the shooter fired at passersby and then lay in wait behind reflective glass in the lobby where he could see outside but officers could not see him.

"As soon as he saw them (the officers), he shot at them," Humphrey said at a Tuesday evening press conference.

Officer Wilt, on the job for only days, was hit in the head at the concrete stairs leading to the office. Galloway, who had been in front of Wilt and was his training officer, was grazed and maneuvered behind a large planter to the left. The videos show both of their perspectives.

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Wilt's footage shows the two officers, the first to respond after the initial 911 call came in minutes earlier, parking and exiting their cruiser outside the building and advancing to the steps, guns drawn. The video cuts out as they reach the top of the stairs. Humphrey said within seconds, the shooter fired and struck Wilt, who went down on the spot.

Galloway's video shows him and Wilt as they reach the top of the stairs. Wilt is not shown being hit, but Galloway rolls down the stairs and positions himself behind the planter and on the sidewalk. He takes cover there for just over three minutes, before other officers arrive.

At that point, Galloway is shown firing several shots. The gunshots are audible but the footage does not offer a clear view of the fatal shot. Humphrey said Galloway did not have a "close-range shot" and the stairs obscured his camera angle.

"I think I've got him down," Galloway says. He then walks up the stairs and over shattered glass. An image blurred by police shows the shooter down in the lobby, near a second set of glass doors.

The tension and stress of the officers is palpable in the videos. But Humphrey said Wilt and Galloway did "absolutely, exactly what they needed to do to save lives."

"There's only a few people in this country that can do what they did. Not everybody can do that," Humphrey said. "They deserve to be honored for what they did because it is not something that comes easily, it is not something that comes naturally. ... That's superhuman."

The five people who died in the shooting were Josh Barrick, 40; Deana Eckert, 57; Tommy Elliott, 63; Juliana Farmer, 45; and Jim Tutt Jr., 64.

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Nine people were hospitalized in its aftermath, including Eckert, who was pronounced dead late Monday night. Five of the injured had been released as of 3:45 p.m. Tuesday, according to University of Louisville Hospital, while two were in fair condition and Wilt remained in critical condition.

Besides Galloway and Wilt, Humphrey praised other first responders for their efforts at the scene, noting that Fire and EMS personnel often enter scenes before they are deemed safe. But he lamented the circumstances that led to those accolades.

“The most heroic things at the peak of our career that we do are shrouded in other people's tragedies," Humphrey said. "As a profession, we're here to save people. And even though we saved lives that day, there are people that lost theirs. We need to honor and respect them.”

Police said earlier that the shooter, Connor Sturgeon, was killed by Galloway about nine minutes after the first 911 call was reported at 8:38 a.m.

"This is truly a time for unity, healing and compassion," Louisville's Interim Police Chief Jacquelyn Gwinn-Villaroel said Tuesday evening. "Our freedom to live in safety and conduct business with peace of mind was challenged" Monday. "But be assured, it is a challenge that the men and women of LMPD are prepared to face and conquer just as was demonstrated by the heroic actions of our responders."

Reach Lucas Aulbach at laulbach@courier-journal.com. Reach Madeline Mitchell at memitchell@enquirer.com.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Louisville shooting body camera footage released by LMPD