GLENWOOD SPRINGS, Colo. (AP) — A state trooper who was wounded by a driver in Glenwood Canyon says he should have died but credits his fellow troopers for saving his life.
Eugene Hofacker talked about the shooting publicly for the first time during the Aug. 8 graduation ceremony for the Colorado Mountain College’s Law Enforcement Training Academy. A mother of a graduate, Kathy Trauger, recorded his speech and told the Glenwood Springs Post Independent (http://bit.ly/1lTqVM6 ) that she posted it online Monday after getting the trooper’s permission.
In the speech, Hofacker said he had his gun drawn as he approached the car of 40-year-old Thomas Ornelas of Montrose on May 8 but he didn’t see Ornelas’ gun until too late. Trooper Shane Gosnell fired back, ultimately killing Ornelas.
Cpl. Coby Smart arrived soon after and tended to Hofacker.
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Information from: Post Independent, http://www.postindependent.com/
