TYLER, Texas, Feb. 28 (UPI) -- Friends recalled the courage and honor of a Texas man who was gunned down trying to stop a gunman who opened fire outside a courthouse.
Mark Wilson, 52, was killed Thursday when he grabbed his gun and exchanged gunfire with David Hernandez Arroyo, Sr. outside the Smith County Courthouse in Tyler. Arroyo also killed his ex-wife and wounded four others before police killed him during a chase.
After a funeral Sunday, about 200 people attended a memorial to remember Wilson, a popular figure in town who lived in a loft across the street from the courthouse.
Police believe his actions probably saved lives, KLTV-TV, Tyler, reported.
"Mark Wilson was a man of honor, and I can think of nothing more honorable than selflessly giving his life in defense of others, because that's just the kind of guy Mark was," said Russell Harris, a friend.
Arroyo, who was wearing a bulletproof vest and a flak jacket, was angry over child support payments, police said.
