36-year-old shot 16-year-old gunman after crawling through broken glass to save children

Kaylub Giamanco, 36, fatally shot a 16-year-old former student at Silver Rail Elementary School in Oregon after crawling through a shattered window to reach a classroom. The incident occurred earlier this month and resulted in the deaths of three male students and one teacher.

Police confirmed that six people were shot inside the classroom. The victims included boys aged five, eight, and 11. A second teacher and one additional child sustained injuries. The attacker, identified as Griffin J John II, had attended special education classes at the school. His motive is currently under investigation.

Giamanco, a carpenter by trade, spoke in an interview with Oregon Public Broadcasting that aired on Friday. He discussed the moment he decided to enter the school. He had driven past the building on his way home from work to eat lunch with his wife. He observed the gunman fire at a pickup truck before moving toward the school. Giamanco retrieved a handgun from his vehicle and contacted emergency services.

"I said, 'I'm sorry, I have to go in. People are going to die,'" Giamanco told the broadcaster. He followed the attacker, who shot through the locked glass doors of the school. Hearing children plead for their lives, Giamanco crawled toward the building. He described the moment as the last thing he would ever do.

Inside the classroom, a teacher was locked in a physical struggle with the gunman. Giamanco opened the door and fired. He shot a second time when the attacker reached for his weapon. Giamanco then placed his gun on the ground and raised his hands as an officer arrived. He stated that he felt like the last line of defense between the children and the shooter.

Giamanco credited the teacher for giving him a chance to intervene without losing his life. Police said the teacher had thrown her phone at the attacker, tackled him, and fought to take his shotgun. Bend Police Chief Mike Krantz stated that she almost certainly helped prevent more bloodshed. Giamanco said he wanted to meet the victims' families to cry with them and hold them.

"I want to apologise for not saving their babies," Giamanco said. "The gratitude for saving people's children is awesome, but there were ones that I didn't save." He noted that he now lies awake at night replaying the events. "I relive, I see faces, I hear voices, I hear screams," he said.

The youngest victim was Rhoam Summer, five. His father described the family as broken and lost. Megan Lambert, 25, was the teacher killed in the attack. Her family described her role as her dream job and said she always fought for the underdog. The other two boys have not been publicly named. The injured teacher, Becky Drury, 54, said in a statement that the gunman shot her as she tried to shut her classroom door.

Giamanco's name became public less than a day after the shooting. His mother, Kenda Freeman, read a family statement asking for privacy and saying he was not seeking recognition. Oregon Governor Tina Kotek praised his intervention while acknowledging its emotional cost. She said her thoughts were with him as he carries a heavy emotional burden.