An Armed Citizen Fired Back in Twin Falls. Police Say It Changed the Attack
Jordan Salinas and an off-duty state trooper returned fire as customers fled, and local officials say their intervention prevented more casualties.
When a rifleman opened fire outside a crowded Twin Falls restaurant Saturday, one of the first people to answer was not an on-duty officer. It was Jordan Salinas, a 35-year-old Kimberly resident carrying a handgun, alongside an off-duty Idaho State Police trooper who also returned fire.
Twin Falls Police Chief Matthew Hicks now credits the pair with pushing the attacker away from the restaurant and keeping the casualty count from climbing. Three victims were killed, seven people were wounded, and the gunman later died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, according to updated accounts from local authorities.
Return fire redirected the gunman
Officers were dispatched at about 2:29 p.m. on Aug. 1 after reports of an active shooter near the In-N-Out Burger in Canyon Park West. The restaurant sits in a busy commercial area, and witnesses described customers, employees and drivers scrambling for cover as a man carrying a rifle moved through the property.
Police identified the gunman as 24-year-old Chad Williams. Investigators believe he acted alone, but they had not announced a motive or determined whether any victim was deliberately targeted as of Sunday.
Salinas was at the restaurant with his girlfriend when the shooting began. Reporting based on an interview with him says he drew the pistol he was carrying and fired toward Williams. An off-duty state trooper also engaged the gunman. Authorities have not publicly named the trooper.
The distinction matters: officials have not said either man wounded Williams. Police said Williams died by suicide near the restaurant. What the return fire did, according to Hicks, was divert the attacker from the crowded business while customers and workers escaped.
Three victims died and seven were wounded
The updated toll includes three people killed by the attacker and seven others injured. One of those killed worked at the restaurant. Officials were still handling family notifications before releasing full victim information.
By Sunday afternoon, two injured people remained in critical condition, three were stable, and two had been treated and released. Police, firefighters, paramedics and officers from surrounding agencies converged on a scene Hicks described as chaotic, with hundreds of witnesses in or near the shopping area.
Twin Falls County Sheriff Jack Johnson praised the armed resident and the off-duty trooper, saying their actions saved lives. Hicks offered the same basic assessment: the two people already on scene interrupted the attack before the full law enforcement response could take control.
Salinas had trained for an emergency
Salinas was identified through an interview published after the shooting. He is a health care worker and the full-time caregiver for his wheelchair-using brother. He said he began firearms training after a 2021 shooting made him think seriously about how he would respond to violence.
That preparation became practical in seconds. He identified the threat, returned fire, and stopped once on-duty officers took over. The sequence is important for public safety because an armed response can create additional confusion unless the person acting also knows when to hand the scene back to police.
The local officials praising Salinas were not making a broad political argument. They were describing a specific result in a specific parking lot. A resident and an off-duty trooper drew the attacker's attention away from families and workers who were trying to get out.
Investigators still need a motive
Williams' family has cooperated with investigators, according to police. Detectives are tracing his movements before the shooting, reviewing witness video and trying to determine why he chose the restaurant. The FBI is assisting and has opened a digital portal for photos, videos and other evidence.
Counseling resources were made available Sunday for people directly affected by the attack, with officials working to extend support through the week. That work will continue alongside the criminal investigation and the recovery of those still hospitalized.
Twin Falls still faces a devastating loss. It also has a confirmed account of what happened in the gap before on-duty officers arrived: one prepared resident and one off-duty trooper confronted a rifleman, redirected him from a crowded restaurant, and then yielded the scene to police. Investigators still have to explain why the attack began. Local officials have already said why it did not become worse.