The anti-gun media (aka "the mainstream media") are fond of parroting the chanting point that "good guys with guns" ending spree killings are rare to nonexistent.
Oh, there is a germ of truth to the idea - because shootings ended by "good guys (and good gals) with guns" tend to end before they become headline-grabbing mass-casualty events. Too late to save every victim, but in time to prevent many, many more deaths at the hands of spree killers looking to gain sick infamy - sometimes with feats of marksmanship under pressure, sometimes just by being there.
And it's happened again.
Over the Memorial Day weekend two weeks ago, outside a Price Chopper grocery store in the Kansas City exurb of Pleasant Hill, Missouri, a 27-year-old man fired the first shots of what authorities believe was intended to be a shooting spree. A 45-year-old woman was murdered; a 16-year-old boy was wounded.
And then two good guys with guns entered the chat:
Pleasant Hill, MO: That whole “armed civilian stops mass shooting” is just a myth, right?
— Good Guy With A Gun stories (@GGWAGonline) June 5, 2026
Right?
Memorial Day at a Price Chopper turned deadly when Allen Prince opened fire in the parking lot with a rifle, killing Amy Coon, 45, and wounding a 16-year-old boy.
Police Chief…
Memorial Day at a Price Chopper turned deadly when Allen Prince opened fire in the parking lot with a rifle, killing Amy Coon, 45, and wounding a 16-year-old boy.
Police Chief Tommy Wright said that “shortly after the first several shots were fired, two gentlemen from the Pleasant Hill area who were armed had the courage to approach this suspect, who then turned the gun on himself.” Wright credits the men for preventing more casualties and thanked them for being willing to courageously “get in front of the danger, and protect innocent lives.”
As spree killers often do when confronted with armed resistance, he turned his gun on himself.
My usual policy is not to name spree killers or wannabe spree killers - it gives them a whiff of the infamy that most of them seek in planning their atrocities. However, since Allen Prince survived and will likely face consequences and social ignominy for his actions, I'll make an exception here.
Pleasant Hills must be pretty red territory - the policy chief was fairly unstinting in his praise for the good guys:
Chief Wright - who was scheduled to retire from the force, but decided to put that off until this investigation is over - pointed out what an anomaly this is in what has heretofore been a pretty placid exuban community:
"Our community is going to have to be patient with those answers. But we also need to know if there was some type of community interaction that could've prevented this," Wright said.
The local NBC affiliate got in a word with one of the good guys:
Witnesses near the scene told [NBC affiliate reporter Ryan] Gamboa they saw an individual point a hunting-style rifle at the woman and Price Chopper employee. Once he realized what was taking place, he took cover in his vehicle and stepped in to help.
This bystander did not want to speak on camera, but stated he drew his own firearm in an attempt to detain the shooter. According to the bystander, that's when the shooter turned the weapon on himself.
Chief Wright did say that he heard a bystander pulled a handgun on the suspect, but was not sure of the details.
Note to the legally-inclined: as a very general rule, if you use lethal force - even the threat of it, toward a good end like stopping a spree killing - it's a good idea to talk to your lawyer before the local TV reporter.
But I have a hunch Pleasant Hill is sane enough to keep things in perspective.
