Elisha Dicken, Greenwood Mall Shooter, Citizen of the Year in Greenwood, Indiana

CONGRATS to Elisjsha Dicken, who saved countless innocent lives when he heroically neutralized an active shooter in the Greenwood Park Mall, and tonight received the Greenwood Citizen of the Year Award from Chief of Police James Ison. I am proud to be your lawyer and your friend. pic.twitter.com/tMjwsNtT7a

— Guy Relford (@guyrelford) March 22, 2023

Those who want a disarmed population have been working hard to make the term “shooter” a pejorative.  Shooting is a sport. Murder is a crime. Shooting is often in defense of self and others. There were two shooters at the Greenwood Park Mall on the afternoon of July 17, 2022. One was there to commit mass murder. The other was there to enjoy himself. He was armed to defend his rights and to protect himself and others. Both fired shots.

Elisjsha D. Dicken prevailed and stopped the carnage. He started firing at the mass murderer from 40 yards away. He was effective and saved many lives. He was the good Greenwood Park Mall shooter. The Mayor of Greenwood Indiana expressed what many others have acknowledged: From the  Mayor of Greenwood:

The shooting at the Greenwood Park Mall-July 17 was a day that will be impossible for many of us to forget. We grieve for the lives lost that night. We pray for those who still struggle with memories from the tragedy. It was unexpected and uncharacteristic for our community. Our first responders along with a brave young man who happened to be at the mall prevented that tragedy from being worse. There are no words to describe my gratitude.

The reason Elisjsha’s last name is spelled Diken below is not obvious. The first name is spelled correctly. For whatever reason, Elisjsha’s last name had been consistently spelled Dicken in previous coverage. The image of Elisjsha Dicken’s lifetime License to Carry Handgun put out by the Greenwood Police in July, 2022 shows the spelling as Dicken. Even with the unfortunate misspelling, it is positive to see a community recognize the courage, awareness, skill, and moral clarity displayed by Eisjsha under intense pressure.

Letter from the Office of the Mayor Mark W. Myers:

July 17th started off to be another beautiful day in Greenwood. Unfortunately, it became one of the darkest days in our history. A lone gunman entered the Food Court in the Greenwood Park Mall. As he emerged from the restroom he began firing a rifle, killing 3 people.Hearing shots ring out, Elisjsha Diken immediately identified the shooter, took cover behind a pillar, drew his weapon and fired at the shooter from 40 yards away. He was able to eliminate the threat. While doing this Elisjsha also was waving innocent civilians to safety. There were countless number of innocent lives saved that day due to his quick and selfless thinking. The City of Greenwood and the residents here owe a great debt of gratitude to Elisjsha. Because of his heroic actions the City of Greenwood proudly honors Elisjsha Diken as the 2022 Citizen of the Year.

A nation needs it heroes. They need to be recognized. They need to be celebrated. For a number of reasons, many of those in leadership positions in the United States of America have denigrated American heroes, and elevated to artificial positions of leadership those who claim to be victims in society, even as those “victims” are granted privileges and treated better than nearly anywhere else in the world.

It is refreshing to see Eli D. Dickens celebrated for saving lives, for showing an example of courage and skill during danger and intense pressure. Young men have risen to defend themselves and others throughout human existence. Their skill and courage have always been celebrated in those societies who survive.

America has always, through its Judeo/Christian ethical base, celebrated truth and the worth of human lives.  Not all societies have done so.

Many societies have celebrated lies, murder, and human sacrifice.  They have not been as successful as a society based on truth. There appear many in the United States who want to change the culture to one based on lies, murder, and human sacrifice.  Celebrating the heroism of Eli Dicken is a small but significant step away from a future which celebrates lies and murder.

About Dean Weingarten:

Dean Weingarten has been a peace officer, a military officer, was on the University of Wisconsin Pistol Team for four years, and was first certified to teach firearms safety in 1973. He taught the Arizona concealed carry course for fifteen years until the goal of Constitutional Carry was attained. He has degrees in meteorology and mining engineering, and retired from the Department of Defense after a 30 year career in Army Research, Development, Testing, and Evaluation.