John Michael 'Johnny' Hurley, a 40-year-old man, was in a store in Olde Town Arvada, Colorado on June 21, 2021, when a deadly chain of events began to unfold outside. Ronald Troyke, 59, had arrived with the intention of killing police officers. He ambushed and fatally shot Arvada Police Officer Gordon Beesley with a shotgun. Troyke then returned to his truck, retrieved an AR-15, and began firing, shattering the windows of patrol cars.
Hearing the gunfire, Hurley, who was carrying a
concealed handgun, ran out of the store and confronted Troyke. He fired his weapon, striking and killing Troyke, an act that police would later describe as heroic, likely preventing further loss of life. In the chaotic moments that followed, Hurley picked up the AR-15 that Troyke had been carrying. It was at this point that a responding Arvada police officer, Kraig Brownlow, arrived on the scene.
Seeing Hurley with the rifle, the officer fired his weapon, striking Hurley. He was transported to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead. The entire incident, from the time Troyke first fired at Officer Beesley to the moment Hurley was shot, transpired in just a matter of minutes. The community was left mourning the loss of both a dedicated police officer and a citizen who had bravely intervened to stop a violent attacker.
In the aftermath, the shooting was investigated by a multi-agency team. The District Attorney for the First Judicial District ultimately determined that the officer who shot Hurley would not face criminal charges, stating that the officer's actions were legally justified under the circumstances, as he perceived Hurley to be an imminent threat. Hurley's family filed a federal lawsuit against the Arvada Police Department, alleging the wrongful use of deadly force. The lawsuit was eventually settled, with the city of Arvada agreeing to pay the family. Throughout the legal proceedings and in public statements, John Hurley was consistently hailed as a hero who saved lives through his decisive and courageous actions.
