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Bill Badger, who helped tackle Jared Loughner putting an end to the Jan. 8, 2011 shooting, died Wednesday. He was 78.
Bill Badger."Bill was in his 70s at the time [of the shooting], and Jared Loughner was a strong 22 year old who had a gun and was attempting to reload," said shooting survivor and Badger friend Pam Simon. "Had he been able to reload, he had three more magazines, he would have been able to kill many more people had it not been for Bill’s heroism.”
Simon said Badger had been in declining health in recent months.
Badger, a retired Army colonel, was 74 on that Saturday morning when six people died. He and former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords were among those shot.
“I’m so sad to learn that Bill Badger has passed away," Giffords said in a statement. "Bill was not only a great man and a proud Army veteran, he was a hero."
Badger had become an advocate against gun violence after the shooting. He and Simon appeared at functions for the group Everytown for Gun Safety.
Simon recalled an Everytown for Gun Safety Rally at which Badger spoke.
"They were being heckled by pro-gun guys," Simon said. "Bill said, 'Wait a minute, you guys. I'm a Republican. I'm a gun owner. I'm a military guy. Last year, I'd have been standing where you are. But when you have a real experience with gun violence and you know that things can be done to change it, you'd be standing with me.'"
"They then came over and had a good conversation, and it changed it from being adversarial to them seeing him as one of them," she said.
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