- A Good Samaritan took action during a car chase on Highway 59 in Texas
- The suspect driving a stolen vehicle got out and started shooting at police – then John Lally, 40, came to the aid of a wounded officer
- Lally – a former criminal himself – managed to capture the entire dramatic shoot-out on video
A former criminal turned Good Samaritan when he saved a police officer who was shot during a dramatic shooting on a Texas highway.
John Phillip Lally, 40, is a man with a criminal record from Houston, Texas, who was in the right place at the right time at 10 a.m. Saturday to save a life.
Lally found himself in the middle of a chaotic gunfight on Highway 59 in Texas after a police chase and a car crash.
He stopped in his truck to help people injured in the crash, but suddenly heard shots and sprang into action.
The Good Samaritan managed to capture the entire incident and even his own heroic intervention on his cell phone.
John Phillip Lally, 40, is a man with a criminal record from Houston, Texas, who was in the right place at the right time at 10 a.m. Saturday to save a life
Lally found himself in the middle of a chaotic shootout on Highway 59 in Texas after a police chase and a car crash
Lally came to help when he heard gunshots and managed to grab the injured officer and drag him to safety behind his vehicle
‘As soon as I jump out of the car, gunshots ring out. Then I looked to my left and saw that officer getting shot,” Lally said.
The pursuit occurred after officers attempted to pull over a suspect in a stolen vehicle, which ended in a multi-car crash.
Officer J. Gibson approached the suspect’s car and gave commands – at which point the shooting broke out and he was shot in the leg by the carjacker.
Lally came to the rescue at this point and managed to grab the injured officer and drag him to safety behind his vehicle.
“Then I grabbed that officer by the vest and dragged him all the way back to my work truck,” Lally said Fox 26.
While Lally sat behind the truck with Gibson, other officers applied a tourniquet to the victim to assist with excessive bleeding from his gunshot wound.
The remaining officers continued to pursue the suspect and in a tragic ending to the scene, the 19-year-old suspect was shot multiple times by five officers, police said.
The suspect later died in hospital from his injuries.
Lally is the business owner and CEO of a T-shirt company called Real Deal Wreckers, based in Houston, Texas.
He has a long history of criminal charges in both Texas and Tennessee – the latter being more than two years ago.
The charges range from aggravated assault to theft of property, but also the use of narcotics and possession of weapons.
Lally has a long history of criminal charges in both Texas and Tennessee — the last more than two years ago — but he is now being praised as a Good Samaritan for his heroic act.
The chase occurred after officers attempted to pull over a suspect in a stolen vehicle, which ended in a multi-car crash
While Lally sat behind the truck with injured Officer Gibson, other officers applied a tourniquet to the victim to assist with excessive bleeding from his gunshot wound
The remaining officers continued to pursue the suspect and in a tragic ending to the scene, the 19-year-old suspect was shot multiple times by five officers, police said. The suspect later died in hospital from his injuries
“It sucks that a lot of people got hurt, it sucks that even the guy who started the whole thing lost his life. I think a higher power knows what they’re doing
In a video of the aftermath – which Lally uploaded to Facebook – he is seen breathing heavily as he re-approaches the scene of the car crash after rescuing the Gibson.
A female car accident victim sat on the ground with one shoe off, holding the hands of another woman and hyperventilating as Lally told her everything would be fine.
“When that officer got shot, I helped drag him there behind my truck and I talked to Trujillo and he gave me his number,” Lally told another officer at the scene.
Lally’s Facebook post received comments praising his heroic act.
‘Thank you very much for your courage and quick action in saving the police officer! You are a hero in my eyes! God bless you sir,” LeAnn Sowell said on Facebook.
“If you see someone you can help, help them. That’s the main moral of the story,” Lally said.