March 2024. Blues Vol 40 No. 3

FROM THE PUBLISHER’S

FROM THE PUBLISHER’S DESK TABC Agent Adrian Herrera, a true American Hero. To be honest, this is not the original column I had written for this month’s issue. The original spoke about the difference between The BLUES and mainstream media? Where we focused on the Hero of the story not the villain. A year ago this month, officers of Metro Nashville PD stopped a shooter at the Covenant Presbyterian Church School. They didn’t hesitate, they ran in, found the suspect, and took her out. Unfortunately, not before she killed six people. Fast forward a year to Houston and off duty officers working security at Lakewood Church. A mentally ill and yes crazy woman walked into the mega church with her 7-year son at her side and began shooting with an AR-15 style rifle. On any given Saturday or Sunday, Lakewood has dozens of off-duty officers working security. One of those officers on this horrific Saturday was TABC Agent Adrian Herrera. The minute the shooting started, Agent Herrera ran towards the gunfire and immediately confronted the shooter. And at no point did he retreat or back down. He engaged her and fired his weapon until she was down. Even when she claimed she had a bomb, he continued to neutralize the threat. Following active shooter protocols, Agent Herrera did exactly what he was supposed to do. He ran TOWARDS the gunfire and took the shooter out. In other words, the man is a damn hero. PERIOD Just before we went live with this issue, HPD released BWC and security footage from the scene. Since its release, social media and cops in general from all over the country have weighed in on how the officers handled the shooter. EVERYONE agrees that had it not been for Agent Herrera, the outcome could have been tragic. Had this crazy woman made it into the sanctuary, dozens and dozens of churchgoers would have been shot and most likely killed. As far as the other actions of the officers, well let’s just say very few kind words were used to describe their actions or lack thereof. I’m not going to Monday Morning Quarterback their actions until all the video is released. What I will say is this. In today’s world, active shooters are a reality. It’s not if but when one will strike in your town on your shift. You may in fact be the first one on the scene and it’s up to you to find the shooter and take them out, even if it means you getting shot and possibly killed in the process. When you were sworn in and they pinned that badge on you, from that minute forward, you accepted the realty that one day you might have to sacrifice your life to protect another human’s life. That is the job and that is the reality. But as my Editor reminded me, all the training in the world doesn’t really prepare you for the day that bullets are coming at you, and you’re prepared to make the ultimate sacrifice or you’re not. And if you’re not, you need to find a new profession. It’s really that simple. Finally, in my original article, I ranted and raved about the mainstream media and their focus on the shooters mental status and what pronouns she used. In fact, they spent days talking about her mental issues and what possessed her to take her son along on a shootout. (I speculate she wanted to die alongside her son to teach the ex-husband a lesson.) In both cases, the mainstream media focused 99% of their coverage on the suspect. But what about the true heroes – they barely mentioned Agent Herrera and the off duty officers who engaged the shooter. I had an email exchange with a local reporter who covered the Lakewood shooting and asked her why she kept referring to the shooter as “they” or “their” and said the shooter was a ‘man’ identifying as a woman. NO, SHE was a SHE and WAS A WOMAN. PERIOD! That’s how she gave birth to a son. Why is how they “identify” even important? Who frickin cares if they are a woman identifying as a man or vice versa. The only thing that really matters is that they are the assholes that took innocent lives and thank God a true hero was there to take them out. And that hero of the day is TABC Agent Adrian Herrera. May God bless you and forever keep you safe. 6 The Blues - March ‘24 The Blues - March ‘24 7