KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A Fort Leavenworth soldier credited with saving countless lives when he stopped an active shooter on the Centennial Bridge Wednesday says he doesn’t consider himself a hero, saying he "had to do something."
“I understand what they’re saying,” Master Sgt. David Royer said at a news conference on Thursday when asked how he feels to be called a hero. “I don’t necessarily myself feel like I’m a hero in this standpoint. I feel as if most people in my situation would have done the same thing.”
Royer said he relied on his training and instincts developed over his 15-year career in the military when he encountered the suspect on the bridge and struck him with his vehicle.
Royer was on the phone with his fiancée when he saw the man pull out a rifle and begin shooting. He instructed his fiancée to call 911 to inform officials of the situation.
While he said adrenaline factored into his actions, he also felt prepared for the situation.
"I was ready to put myself in harm’s way. That’s what we’re trained for, for the better cause," Royer said. "My life is worth something, but there are also many other lives out there too, so if I can sacrifice myself for the majority, that is my motive."
When all was said and done, the 34-year-old soldier went home on Wednesday and gave his children a hug, he said.
He said that while it's hard to tell now what he will take away from the incident, he believes there are others out there who would have done exactly what he did.
"There's people all around the world that will do things like that," Royer said. "I believe there’s more good out there than there is bad, and that there’s good people out there who will stop a situation like that."
Royer also credited first responders for their "textbook response" to the situation, treating it as an active scene until the area had been cleared.
Leavenworth Police Chief Pat Kitchens said Wednesday that Royer’s actions “saved countless people.” The suspect, who has not been identified, was seemingly firing at random cars on the bridge.
The suspect was injured when he was struck by Royer's vehicle and taken to an area hospital with injuries that were not life-threatening. Another active-duty soldier was struck by the suspect’s gunfire and also had non-life threatening injuries.
Royer, who said he was driving home to Platte City when the incident occurred, is assigned to the 705th Military Police Battalion, 15th Military Police Brigade and serves as an internment/resettlement non-commissioned officer at the Midwest Joint Regional Correctional Facility, one of two military prisons on Fort Leavenworth.
He joined the U.S. Army in 2005 and served at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, and Fort Knox, Kentucky, before coming to Fort Leavenworth. He also served a combat tour in Iraq from July 2005 to July 2006.
Late Thursday, Leavenworth County District Attorney Todd Thompson said he planned to file charges against the suspect during a 12:30 p.m. news conference on Friday.
