A Michigan deacon who ran over a heavily armed gunman outside a suburban church said he felt an unshakeable divine calling to act before the shooter could enter and attack congregants.
Richard Pryor, a deacon at CrossPointe Community Church in Wayne, was the first person to confront 31-year-old Brian Anthony Browning when Browning arrived at the church Sunday morning with multiple weapons, tactical gear, and hundreds of rounds of ammunition.
“As soon as he got out of the vehicle, I saw the fatigues, I saw the gun on his hip, and he pulled his gun out of the vehicle,” Pryor told 7 News Detroit.
The deacon, who was driving around the property, had a chilling conversation with Browning after noticing him wandering around.
“I pulled up and I asked him, ‘Hey, boss, are you okay? Everything all right?’ and he doesn’t say anything, he doesn’t respond. It’s not a smile, not a smirk, he just kind of looks at me,” he recalled.
Moments later, Pryor floored the gas and struck Browning with his truck — temporarily stopping him.
He said he felt a divine call to act, replying when asked whether he sensed that innocent worshippers might die if he didn’t: “I knew, but I didn’t know.”
Browning still managed to fire several rounds, including one at Pryor’s truck, before members of the church security team returned fire and wounded him before he could enter the church.
Cops arrived and attempted to perform life-saving measures on Browning, but he was pronounced dead at the scene.
“‘I’ve realized how much damage he came to do, especially after the fact,” Pryor said. “Generations of families were in this church.”
Security guard Jay Trombley, who returned fire, also described feeling a divine calling to wound the shooter.
“I found out that evil came to our door, but God’s hand of protection was right over us,” he told the outlet.
Another member of the security team was shot in the leg and is recovering in stable condition.
Pryor’s truck, which he uses for his bread delivery job, was also destroyed after hitting Browning, the outlet reported.
A GoFundMe to buy the deacon a new one has raised over $36,000 of its $45,000 goal.
Browning’s mother is a member of the church, and he attended services there a handful of times over the past year, local outlets previously reported.
He was armed with an AR-15-style rifle at the time, along with more than a dozen fully loaded magazines, a semiautomatic handgun with an extended magazine, and hundreds of rounds of ammunition. Authorities later found more weapons in his home.
He had no prior criminal record and might have been suffering a mental health crisis, police said
When asked if his life led him to the fateful moment, Pryor replied: “I definitely do now.”
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