Arby's Customer Stops Gunman

There has been a terrible tragedy in Utah leaving a corrections officer dead and many individuals traumatized by the actions of Curtis Allgier. Curtis Allgier had been in jail on various counts. He was having lower back pain while in jail, and was therefore scheduled for a doctor's visit to look into the problem.

Allgier was taken to the University of Utah orthopedic clinic for a consultation with a doctor. According to Fox News, the University of Utah medical center routinely handles prison inmate examinations. Allgier entered the medical center with metal restraints on his wrists. Metal objects, however, can not be present during an MRI. Therefore, during tests like this, metal restraints are often replaced with plastic handcuffs which are more flexible and don't interfere with the medical procedure.

Stephen Anderson was the corrections officer who transported and was supervising Allgier during this trip to the University of Utah. At some point leading up to the MRI, Anderson and Allgier were alone in the examination room. Nobody knows the details of what happened next. Unfortunately, however, Allgier somehow got his hands on Anderson's gun. Allgier shot Anderson in the head. Anderson was 60 years old and had been a corrections officer for 22 years.

Allgier then escaped the medical center on foot. He held up two individuals in a Ford Explorer at gunpoint and fled authorities in the SUV. The car chase lasted approximately 40 minutes and reached speeds of 100 mph according to the Deseret News in Salt Lake City. Allgier drove over tire spikes, but continued driving for several miles before jumping out of a car at the drive-thru of a local Arby's restaurant. Inside the Arby's, Allgier fired at least one shot. Luckily, nobody was physically injured.

Eyewitnesses who were eating at that Arby's said Allgier yelled for everyone to get on the ground. There were approximately 10 customers and employees inside the restaurant according to the Deseret News. One employee was able to escape safely through the drive-thru window, and three customers fled the building when police arrived at the scene.

59 year old Eric Fullerton, who was a former Army paratrooper, wrestled the gun away from Allgier at some point during this confrontation. Eric Fullerton told KUTV, "Everybody is calling me a hero. I'm not a hero. I just did what I had to do." Despite Fullerton's humility, I am sure that there are many people involved with this tragedy who would definitely label him a hero. Allgier was caught by police later as he was attempting to hide in a room at Arby's. The Deseret News reports that Anderson's family are members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and they are receiving tremendous support from their local church. Shawn Anderson, the victim's son, told the Deseret News, "He was an amazing kind of guy who would do anything to help you out, just the greatest kind of guy who would give you the shirt off his back."

Thankfully, Allgier is back in jail and criminal charges are forthcoming.

Sources:

Fox News, http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,286596,00.html

The Deseret News, http://deseretnews.com/dn/view/0,1249,680194054,00.html

KUTV, http://kutv.com/archive/local_story_176100921.html