Sergeant calls victims top focus

He and his fellow officers have been called heroes. They have been honored by community leaders and state lawmakers for their actions.

But Salt Lake City Police Sgt. Josh Scharman is extremely reluctant to talk about what happened on the night of Feb. 12 that earned him and his colleagues such high praise.

Scharman, along with Salt Lake City Police Sgt. Andy Oblad, detective Dustin Marshall and detective Brett Olsen were the first officers to arrive at Trolley Square after 18-year-old Sulejman Talovic randomly opened fire on shoppers as he walked through the building, killing five and seriously wounding four.

The officers met up with off-duty Ogden police officer Ken Hammond who had been in the mall having dinner before the start of the shooting. The group cornered Talovic near Pottery Barn Kids where he was shot and killed.

The quick response by those officers saved countless more lives. But Scharman, speaking publicly for the first time about the incident, said he and the other officers aren't comfortable with the media attention they have received. He said their efforts shouldn't be singled out.

"Every officer's response that night was outstanding," he said. "Everyone did an amazing job."

But even more important to the officers, they say the unwanted attention may take away from what they say should be the real focus — the victims.

"That's where our thoughts should be," Scharman said. "This isn't about us at all. We get paid to do a certain service to the community," he said.

Although Scharman tries to deflect attention by saying it could have been any officer who arrived first that day, others point to the fact it was fortunate Scharman and his group were the first to get to the mall. Scharman is one of the men who trains the department's SWAT team and frequently participates in exercises training officers for such an incident.

When Scharman arrived at Trolley, his training instinctively took over. Engaging in a gun battle with Talovic wasn't what was hard, but rather realizing the carnage and destruction Talovic had caused.

Still, Scharman felt his job was easier compared to other officers who had to stay in the mall and be around the destructive scene for up to four hours.

Oblad and Hammond moved in on Talovic from the south end of the mall while Scharman, Marshall and Olsen confronted him from the north.