Comments about ‘Officer shot near Grand America Hotel; gunman shot and killed’

We widely underestimate the bravery and heroism of police officers. I hate getting a traffic ticket, but I am grateful for each of them.

Praying for the officer. And the families........

My prayers are with the brave officer. May God bless him and his family during this time.

Prayer going up for the officer. What is wrong with people in the Utah-Arizona area? Have people lost their minds?

Thank goodness for the great police officers we employ throughout the state for our protection.
I looked at the 5 comments because I wondered if someone would spin this story to be negative about Utah and its people. The answer, of course, is yes. That is pretty disappointing.

Why isnt anyone thinking about what this guy would have done had he gotten into the hotel? We could have had a trolley square ten times over....

It will be interesting to hear the story.. if we get to hear the story of the man in the fatigues. Many of our fine men and women who serve our country return mentally unwell from being thrown into a world most cant imagin. You dont just step back into normal life and I dont know when our military is going to learn this. Its seen as a weakness as I've been told by many ex-military to seek mental help in dealing with what they have done and seen. I think it should be manditory for each officer to spend time with a therapist before being shipped home. I understand that not all of them need this but it would help the ones who do not feel flawed. I'm not saying that he must be excused but I'm hesitant to jump up and down (like some) at the death of one of our boys until we hear what was going on.

Well it is good to hear that the two people saw something that didnt look right, instead of just walking away not thinking something was wrong they told an officer about it. Its good to know that there is people out there like them and the officer.

I feel bad for the family of the fallen one, now their pain is just begining. But at least he didnt take anyone else with him.

Sad few days hearing about all the shootings at the people protecting us..............

@DMV Yes, sometimes war can cause mental illness, and sometimes mental illness will first manifest in young adults in their twenties.

I'm grateful no officers were killed, but my heart aches for this soldier-veteran. I'm an Army wife living at Fort Lewis (JBLM) and I see these guys coming back from war, my husband being one of them. Many of them need help and are not getting it. This guy made it through Afghanistan, he shouldn't have been shot and killed in Utah. I know there was probably only so much the police could do, but before you cheer on the situation, please keep in mind these soldiers deserve better than to be turned lose only to be killed by thier fellow citizens. If more of the public cared enough to demand better for our vets/returning soldiers, maybe this situation won't happen again. I'm in tears. They are good guys who deserve better.

Right there with you Julie_anna! My thoughts exactly. Our soldiers deserve much more than to just be dropped off when they return. I still hope we hear more about why he was at the hotel. I'm concerned when I hear he was training. Maybe he really thought he was?? If not what was the plan?

Pat Taylor and Tom Meyer of New Orleans are heroes. Sounds like this nut was pacing and trying to get the nerve up to go and do what could have amounted to significantly more damage. If these two heroes hadn't called police when they did, it could have been ugly. Thank you for your quick response and thank you SLC Police for your 3 minute response time as well.

Linda Lucas | 5:55 p.m. Aug. 27, 2010 said:
"Prayer going up for the officer. What is wrong with people in the Utah-Arizona area? Have people lost their minds?" Uhhhh, yes...every one of the nutballs that took aim and shot at police officers.

Greetings:

What's wrong with this picture?

Obviously, not everything is as it appears.

We have a soldier, professionally trained, combat experienced, and fully equipped.

Or was he merely a fake, a military impersonator, rejected by the Army, and wearing a uniform purchased on the Internet?

But, even though he is quite capable of doing so, he doesn't inflict any fatalities.

Instead, he draws fire from multiple police officers, in order to end his own life.

Why did he use his weapon?

What caused that first shot to be fired?

So, what is the REAL story here?

What really happened, and why?

Oh, and by the way, DESERET NEWS reporter, for us old soldiers, there is a difference between a "magazine" and a "clip".

According to the photograph, the deceased had numerous magazines of ammunition in pouches on his person.

I didn't see any clips of ammo depicted.

I'm glad the police officer survived, and will fully recover.

It's deja vu all over again - - - years ago, we saw this same phenomenon with Viet Nam veterans.

Thank you.

John Robert Mallernee
Armed Forces Retirement Home
Washington, D.C. 20011-8400

@Silly - the reason the two witnesses came foward when they did is because they are from Louisiana and we are use to having idiots run the streets armed down here.

I'm sorry the police office was shot but this guy had murder on his mind and for what ever reason he got what he deserved.

I cam back from Vietnam and I didn't shoot any police officers. So what's the deal here????

DMV and julie_ann. Thank you! Well said! What a tragedy!

Amen to Julie_anna.

A sad day for everyone involved. In an era when soldiers are now being pumped full of anti-depressants and thrown back onto the battlefield rather than treated, then sent home, the local law enforcement (often vets themselves) have to suffer the fallout.

Please give our boys the support they need, spend less on corrupt foreign governments and more on psychological support for our troops, maybe?

The officers made the correct choice in a no win situation. May they receive better care than the shooter did.

I am so glad the Filipino police is not patroling this country.

This report leaves a lot of questions unanswered. Was he a recent combat veteran? If he was mentally ill, who was responsible for him?

If he was a recent combat veteran, thank goodness for the Salt Lake Police dept. This could have been a huge bloodbath with multiple deaths. The Army is not taking care of its own. There are thousands of soldiers who have served who deserve better.