Texas Lt. Gov. Credits Church Security Team, Change in State Law After Gunman Is Quickly Shot

In this still frame from livestreamed video provided by law enforcement, churchgoers take cover while a congregant armed with a handgun, top left, engages a man who opened fire, near top center just right of windows, during a service at West Freeway Church of Christ in White Settlement, Texas, on Dec. 29, 2019. West Freeway Church of Christ/Courtesy of Law Enforcement via AP

Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick praised the church security team that helped stop a mass shooting on Dec. 29 and noted that a state law passed earlier this year made clear that gun owners with conceal carry licenses could carry firearms in churches.

“Our hearts are heavy today as we pray for the victims of this tragic shooting, their families, this church, and this community. But we are also grateful and thankful for the unparalleled heroism of two parishioners who were determined to protect the people in their church community,” Patrick said during a press conference on Dec. 29, hours after the shooting at the West Freeway Church of Christ in the Fort Worth area.

“Because of the quick action of these two men, this evil event was over in six seconds. There is no way to know how many lives they saved. The brave officers from the White Settlement Police Department were on the scene in less than two minutes, but these men who had volunteered for the church security team had already secured their church.”

Jeff Williams, director of the state Department of Public Safety, said the men who stopped the shooter saved everyone else.

Texas Department of Public Safety regional director Jeff Williams speaks during a news conference, as Tarrant County Sheriff Bill Waybourn (L) and White Settlement Police Chief J.P. Bevering (R) stand behind him on Dec. 29, 2019, in front of West Freeway Church of Christ, in White Settlement, Texas. David Kent/AP Photo

“The citizens who were inside that church undoubtedly saved 242 other parishioners, and that might get swept aside,” he said at the press conference. “It was miraculous. The true heroes in all this are the people who were sitting in those pews today and responded, the immediate responders ... it was truly heroic.”

Patrick noted that Senate Bill 535 was signed by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott earlier this year. The bill struck language from state law that barred licensed holders from carrying handguns into churches, synagogues, or other places of religious worship. Abbott signed another law in 2017 exempting churches from state fees that private institutions must pay to form their own security forces.

Britt Farmer, senior minister at the church, praised laws that let churchgoers carry guns. “We lost two great men today, but it could have been a lot worse. I’m thankful our government has allowed us the opportunity to protect ourselves,” he said at the press conference.

Abbott called the shooting an “evil act of violence” on Dec. 29 while Erin Nealy Cox, U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Texas, said in a statement that the shooting was being investigated.

“No one should be subjected to gunfire in a house of worship,” Cox said.

An FBI agent stands outside West Freeway Church of Christ as authorities continue to investigate a fatal shooting at the church in White Settlement, Texas, on Dec. 29, 2019. David Kent/AP Photo

Video Captures Attack

A livestream video captured the shooting. The footage shows the gunman get up from a pew near the back of the room and walk up to a man who was standing in the corner. The gunman suddenly reaches into his jacket, pulls out a shotgun, and fires twice, striking two other men.

A third man is seen pulling out a handgun and shooting the gunman just six seconds after the man pulled out the shotgun.

At least five others were seen brandishing guns and pointing them at the gunman, while the bulk of the worshipers ducked behind pews or fled the room.

Two people were killed in the shooting in addition to the gunman, who hasn’t been identified.