Man who took down church attacker awarded with highest Texas civilian honor

AUSTIN, Texas -- Gov. Greg Abbott on Monday gave Texas' highest civilian honor to a 71-year-old man who shot and killed an armed attacker at a church in December.

Abbott gave Jack Wilson the Governor's Medal of Courage during a ceremony in Austin, calling him a hero for stopping the shooter at a church in the Fort Worth-area town of White Settlement.

Wilson, a firearms instructor who trained the West Freeway Church of Christ's volunteer security team, shot the attacker once in the head after he opened fire with a shotgun in the church's sanctuary. Wilson's single-shot quickly ended the attack in which two parishioners, 64-year-old Anton "Tony" Wallace and 67-year-old Richard White, were killed.

"When events arise, you're going to do one of two things. You're either going to step up and do what's right or walk away. And I'm not one to walk away," Wilson said in accepting the medal at the Texas Governor's Mansion.

Authorities identified the attacker as Keith Thomas Kinnunen, 43, who had a history of criminal and psychological trouble.

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