Dallas Police Shooter Was Former Army Reservist Who Hated Police; Victims Identified

Dallas, TX — Micah Xavier Johnson, the sniper who killed five Dallas policemen Thursday and injured seven others, was a former Army reservist, a black man who had grown increasingly resentful toward law enforcement in general and especially hateful of white officers.

He shot the policemen while they were gathered in large numbers to ensure the safety of supporters and members of the Black Lives Matter movement who were marching in protest of police shootings. The racial elements of the attack have only added to the despair evident among political leaders and citizens alike.

On Friday, religious influentials, black and white, stood with Dallas Mayor S. Mike Rawlings and Police Chief David Brown as several hundred citizens gathered with them for a prayer service.

Speakers issued a call to action, stressing the importance of working together to overcome heightened fears, to ease racial tensions laid bare and to end the open hostility between police and citizens that is disrupting so many cities.

That was essentially President Obama's message in remarks he made hours before Thursday's attack, when tensions were rising and protests were forming across the country over the killing of two black men at the hands of police in Minnesota and Louisiana.

The president, in Europe for NATO meetings, said he understands why some people are frustrated with police but that there is no justification for the Dallas attack, which he called "vicious, calculated and despicable."

Investigators, meanwhile, continued to comb the area of the shooting for evidence and worked to learn everything they could about the shooter.

Mayor Rawlings told the Associated Press that Johnson used an AR-15 assault weapon in the ambush. Police said a search of Johnson's home turned up bomb-making materials, rifles, ammunition, bullet-proof vests and a journal of combat tactics.

A picture has emerged of the attacker, a 25-year-old from Mesquite, as an angry young man with a warped interpretation of the tactics of empowerment for the black community. His decision to attack was strictly at odds with the approach of the tens of thousands of supporters and members of the Black Lives Matter movement. They have succeeded in spotlighting the need for police reform through demonstrations and marches that, while disruptive, have generally been peaceful.

As the Dallas protesters were concluding their march peacefully Thursday and beginning to disperse, Johnson unleashed his assault, targeting police officers whose only apparent provocations were doing their job and being white.

U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch said the attack would be investigated and prosecuted as a hate crime, the first ever to focus on a cop killing.

“This has been a week of profound grief and heartbreaking loss," she said during a nationally televised press briefing Friday. “After the events of this week, Americans across the country are feeling a sense of helplessness, and uncertainty and of fear."

Also on Patch

• Protesters Who Ran From Gunfire Are 'Hypocrites,' Texas Lt. Gov. Says

The Dallas mayor said Johnson was the sole shooter. He attributed earlier statements blaming multiple shooters to the chaos of the evening.

"We believe now the city is safe," Rawlings said.

Neither the police chief nor the mayor would provide information about three suspects in custody — not to block transparency, they said, but to ensure the integrity of the ongoing police investigation.

“We’re not going to tell you anything about the suspects. We will when it’s the right time, now is not the right time,” Rawlings said.

During a tense, hours-long standoff with police early Friday, before a robot armed with a bomb was navigated close enough to Johnson to blow him up, contrasting images of the young man emerged. This wasn't the picture of a steady Army veteran who served in Afghanistan trying to sort out his life like so many other soldiers who return from war. Rather, this was an irrational killer who directed his wrath at people he selected based solely on their uniform and their race.

“He said he was upset at white people,” the police chief said at a press conference. “He said he wanted to kill white people, especially white police officers.”

Three of the five law enforcement officers killed in the attack have been identified either by police or family: Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) officer Brent Thompson, 43; Michael Krol, 40, a former Wayne County, Michigan Sheriff's Deputy; and Patrick Zamarripa, 32, a veteran who had served three tours in Iraq.

The Washington Post identified the other officers as Lorne Ahrens, a former semi-pro football player and 14-year veteran of the Dallas police; and Michael Smith, a father of two.

Members of Johnson's family were not talking to the media, if for no other reason than their grief and confusion over how one of their own could be responsible for that horrible night in Dallas. Johnson's loved ones made clear they are finding it difficult to reconcile how their proud Army reservist could be the same man who opened fire on innocent police officers.

“Please out of respect for my family. If you following the news and know whats going on, I’m not talking to anyone and please keep your comments thoughts respectful,” his sister, Nicole Johnson, wrote on her Facebook page. “The news will say what they think but those that knew him know this wasn’t like him. Only close family can call me. This is the biggest loss we’ve had.”.

Police said Johnson has no criminal history.

Police said they are examining the bomb-making materials and other weaponry found in his house, including the journal on combat tactics, which could provide clues about whether anybody else was involved in the shootings or their planning.

President Obama will shave a day off his Europe trip and visit Dallas next week at the invitation of the city's mayor, the White House announced.

In his remarks on the police shootings in Minnesota and Louisiana, the president has advocated for a review of police tactics, clear policies on the use of force and an examination of the racial disparities in arrest rates.

Responding to the Dallas shootings, though, he has focused more on acknowledging the difficulties and dangers of police work.

"Police in Dallas were on duty, doing their jobs, keeping people safe during peaceful protests," the president said. "I believe I speak for every single American when I say we are horrified and we stand united with the people and police department in Dallas."

Photo: Facebook