Munley took shooter down Posted On: Saturday, Nov. 7 2009 05:40 AM By Amanda Kim Stairrett
Killeen Daily Herald

FORT HOOD – Calls came in to 911 at about 1:23 p.m. Thursday. Word was an active shooter was in the area between Howze Theater and Soldier Readiness Processing site. Kimberly Munley, a Fort Hood civilian police officer, was in the immediate vicinity.

At 1:27 p.m. she arrived on scene and saw injured, frightened people. She heard the shooter was in a courtyard between two buildings at the processing center. Rounding the corner, she saw an injured soldier on the ground. The shooter turned toward her and charged.

The 5-foot, 2-inch officer held her ground. She and the shooter fired their weapons, hitting each other at the same time. Munley was struck in the legs and wrist. The shooter in the torso.

"She did what he was trained to do," Munley's boss said Friday afternoon at Fort Hood.

Officials reported Friday evening that Munley wasn't the only law enforcement official to quickly arrive on the scene. Col. (promotable) John Rossi, Fort Hood deputy commander for fires, said that Sr. Sgt. Mark Todd also arrived on scene at about the same time. Both he and Munley engaged the shooter, Rossi said. Todd is a retired military police officer.

When officials started telling the story of what happened that Thursday, the first responders stood out. They, and as reported, Munley, were the first ones on the scene. Officials said Munley was the first one to shoot the suspect who was later identified as Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, a psychiatrist at Carl R. Darnall Army Medical Center.

Munley was a topic of interest for the public and the media swarm that descended upon Central Texas, but officials said little of who this mystery officer was until Friday.

Munley's boss, Chuck Medley, director of Fort Hood Emergency Services, talked about her efforts.

"She saved, in my mind no doubt, countless lives," Medley said.

Munley is a Fort Hood police officer, but not a military police soldier. Fort Hood employs civilian police officers to maintain the force needed to patrol the post.

Munley is a member of the Fort Hood Police Department's SWAT team, a weapons expert and "very, very, very physically fit," Medley said. Though she's short in stature, "don't let that fool you," he added.

Munley has been on the Fort Hood force since January 2008 and is 35 years old. Her husband is a soldier at Fort Bragg, N.C., and was en route to Fort Hood Thursday afternoon to be with her.

The officer was shot in the left leg and knee, and surgeons at Metroplex worked Friday to remove bullets from her right thigh.

Medley visited Munley in the hospital early Friday morning and said she was in extremely high spirits. She joked that the bullet wounds on her arm were a "minor scratch."

Officials said that Munley would fully recover from her injuries.

Col. Steven Braverman, commander of Carl R. Darnall Army Medical Center, praised the efforts of first responders like Munley, calling them "heroic."

Contact Amanda Kim Stairrett at astair@kdhnews.com or (254) 501-7547.