The Allen Premium Outlets Mall shooting left families of eight victims grieving their deaths and seven others with injuries, forever changed by the mass shooting. Days after the shooting, Irvin Walker talked about how his faith was getting him through. NBC 5’s Brittney Johnson sat down with him a year later and learned what it feels like to survive a mass shooting and what happens when the spotlight fades, the calls stop, and surviving victims are left to pick up the pieces.
A year after surviving the deadly shooting at Allen Premium Outlets, Irvin Walker shares how his life has changed.
Walker knows he is a walking miracle.
"The doctors came in and said, I can't believe you're still alive," Walker said.
On May 6, 2023, he survived a barrage of bullets that pierced his windshield and upper body in the parking lot of the Allen Mall.
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"It's a miracle, no way. Sometimes, I ask why my chest hurts...because I still have metal next to my heart," Walker said.
Despite the horror he endured, when Walker reflects, he says his memories mostly focus on the faith that's pulled him through and things that were bright.
"That were something to celebrate and typically that is making it out alive, right? Receiving quality care from Medical City. I remember being so joyous and thinking that what people were saying was a lie. For example, Irvin, your life would never be the same. I was like, it's going to be alright," he said.
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Yet, 12 months later, Walker admits it's been harder than he imagined
"Physically, mentally, financially, economically, for me, things have changed. The way I earned money and brought money to my household, my body, my mind." Walker said.
Walker shared that he struggles to lift items heavier than 20 pounds and is still working through the trauma in physical and psychotherapy,
"As part of psychotherapy. I was challenged to visit the mall, and my understanding is that the reason is to take my power back. I was very antsy, a little paranoid of just looking at every shopper there, and also a realization is like wow all that occurred here, it's just like people are just shopping like nothing happened," Walker said. "The nights when I wake up at three o'clock and can't go back to sleep. I'm thinking, why me? Could this have been prevented?"
That is one of the main questions his attorney, Darryl Washington, has spent the past year investigating.
Washington says he's been digging through documents, requesting information on the shooter's military history, and interviewing witnesses about the level of mall security. He's trying to find out if there were adequate security personnel to handle the size of the crowds at the mall and if there was anything in the shooter's past that should have prevented him from getting his hands on a gun.
"We plan, if there were people that could have done things differently, we plan to hold those fully accountable for what happened on May 6, 2023," said Washington. "We know that lawsuits get people's attention, and we know that and when you get people's attention you hope that you can somehow come up with change and I think that's the thing that would mean the most to Irving."
Washington says they planned to get through the anniversary, leaving the focus on the victims before filing a lawsuit they hope will lead to broad security upgrades and safer malls.
NBC 5 anchor Brittney Johnson asked Walker, what's next for him?
"I believe I'm surviving right meaning I'm not thriving right, I'm just alive and well. I really want to be overcoming this," Walker said.
Walker says he's beginning to make more progress in therapy and hopes to get over the fear of going out in public so that he can return to enjoying his favorite activities, including going to the movies.
He worked as an insurance adjuster and says he isn't sure he'll be able to get back to climbing on roofs and doing what he used to. Walker says he hopes one day to serve and make a difference for other innocent victims of violence who need ongoing therapy and financial support.
His attorney said they plan to take legal action against the mall's owners and property management, the shooter's estate, and the military.
