Idaho citizen’s return fire credited with limiting casualties in In-NOut shooting
A healthcare worker who fired at the gunman during the Twin Falls In-NOut Burger attack said his response was instinctive; police said his actions, along with an off-duty officer, helped prevent further injuries.
A 35-year-old healthcare worker returned fire on a 24-year-old shooter at an In-NOut Burger in Twin Falls, Idaho, on Saturday, an action police say helped limit the number of victims. The man, Jordan Salinas, said he reacted automatically after hearing gunshots while dining with his girlfriend. He drew a semi-automatic pistol from a shoulder holster and fired at the attacker, who was later identified as Chad Williams.
Salinas told the Idaho Statesman that he had been training with firearms since a 2021 mall shooting in Boise that left two dead and four wounded. He described following a four-step process—observe, orient, decide and act—taught in his training, and said he felt no fear during the confrontation.
Twin Falls Police Chief Matthew Hicks said the combined actions of Salinas and an off-duty officer “helped drive the suspect away from the scene, preventing further casualties.” Sheriff Jack Johnson called the individuals “true heroes in our community.”
Williams killed three people before dying from a self-inflicted gunshot wound and wounded seven others. Two of the wounded were discharged from the hospital, three remained stable and two were in critical condition.
The incident adds to a reported 280 mass shootings in the United States this year, according to the Gun Violence Archive, a nonpartisan database that defines mass shootings as incidents with four or more victims shot or wounded.