A rookie cop on just his fourth shift was one of the first two officers to descend upon the downtown Louisville bank where an employee opened fire Monday, and the rookie was hit in a barrage of bullets moments later that left him in critical condition, body-camera footage shows.
The Louisville Metro Police Department released body-camera footage Tuesday showing how the gunman in the deadly shooting, Connor Sturgeon, was declared “down” just seven minutes after the initial dispatch call.
The footage, which was edited and blurred by the police department, shows Officer Nickolas Wilt, who graduated from the police academy on March 31, driving to the shooting scene with training Officer Cory Galloway, who has been with the department since 2018.
The two ran up the stairs of bank at 8:41 a.m. and were fired upon seconds later.
Galloway is seen tumbling to the ground and taking cover behind a planter box and returning fire. The video does not show Wilt getting shot but a blurred-out figure is seen behind Galloway as he runs for cover.
Police included a still photo in the released footage from inside the bank showing the gunman in jeans and sneakers and holding a rifle at his side.
Louisville Police Deputy Chief Paul Humphrey said the gunman had an elevated position behind glass doors that gave him a tactical advantage and meant no one could see him.
At one point Galloway is heard yelling, “He’s shooting straight through these windows, right towards the officer.”
More officers are seen arriving to the bank as sirens wail in the background.
At 8:44 a.m. Galloway is seen opening fire toward the doors and glass is seen shattering. Seconds later he shouts: “I think I got him down! I think he’s down!”
Galloway then headed toward the building, yelling at other police officers on site to “Get the officer” and made his way into the bank through the shattered glass doors where he passed a figure, blurred out, sprawled on the ground.
A timeline shared by police in the footage…
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