Bodycam footage that has been released of the Feb. 11 shooting at Lakewood Church in Houston revealed that one person responding to the scene prayed while waiting to confront the shooter.
“We need to approach. Father God, just be with us Forgive us of our sins,” a female voice is heard saying in a snippet posted by NBC.
KHOU has identified the voice as that of off-duty Houston police officer Garcia.
During the incident, Genesse Moreno, 36, entered the church, which is led by Pastor Joel Osteen, with a rifle. Security officers responded with gunfire of their own and killed Moreno.
Moreno’s 7-year-old son was critically wounded in the gunfire, and another church member was injured.
Officials have not said who shot the child in the head or released a motive for the attack.
Katherine Schweit, who created the FBI’s active shooter program, said responding officers did their job..
“It was gripping to listen to the officer asking God to guide them, knowing she needed to move closer as fast as she can. The frightening part, the reality you see in that footage, she doesn’t know what she’s going to face,” she said, according to KHOU.
Video of the incident that was released showed Moreno with a rifle walking through the lobby and parishioners running after a shot was fired.
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At one point in the video, a male responding said that he is “pinned down” by Moreno.
The video shows Moreno, as she stood over her wounded child, calling out “Stand down, I have a bomb.”
NBC reported that after the child was shot, Garcia knelt by the boy and prayed, “Father God, please bring him close to you.”
The full video released by Houston police is on YouTube and is shown below. Viewers should be aware the video contains graphic violence.
Mark Stevens, a retired Houston police detective, said the off-duty officers had to react to the unexpected, according to KTRK-TV.
“I mean she just appears. There is no time other than to take immediate action,” he said.
He said officers were outgunned because they had handguns and Moreno had a rifle.
“Shooting a rifle is a distance thing. I mean, they can pick you off from a long way away. Those officers had to get close enough, so their shots were accurate,” Stevens said.
