Armed Citizen Halts Traverse City Walmart Stabbing Spree: Second Amendment Saves Lives Again

On July 26, 2025, a knife-wielding maniac, 42-year-old Bradford James Gille, turned a Traverse City, Michigan, Walmart into a bloodbath, stabbing 11 people in a random frenzy.

But the story didn’t end in tragedy because one armed citizen, Derrick Perry, a U.S. Marine Corps veteran, stepped up, drew his legally carried pistol, and stopped the attack cold. Alongside another brave bystander, Matthew Kolakowski, Perry pinned the suspect in the parking lot until cops arrived. This is the Second Amendment in action—raw, undeniable, and life-saving.

This is further proof of why Michigan needs Constitutional Carry now and why every last gun control law in Michigan must be sent to the scrap heap.

Picture the scene: it’s 4:45 p.m., and Gille is slashing through the Walmart checkout area, targeting anyone in his path—men, women, young, old, even a store employee. Eleven victims, six in critical condition, blood on the floor, screams echoing. Shoppers scatter, employees yell warnings, but no police are there yet.

Enter Derrick Perry, armed and ready, who confronts Gille with his firearm, demanding he drop the knife. Kolakowski, another Marine vet, backs him up with a shopping cart, and together they subdue the attacker. Sheriff Michael Shea called it “remarkable.” I call it the Second Amendment doing what it was meant to do: empowering good guys to stop bad guys when the chips are down.

At Great Lakes Gun Rights, we’ve been shouting this from the rooftops since 2015: the Second Amendment isn’t just a right; it’s a lifeline. Perry’s quick action shows why we fight to make Michigan a Constitutional Carry state. You are your own best defense. No permit, no red tape—just a law-abiding citizen with the tools to act when evil strikes. The fact is carrying concealed for self-defense is difficult in Michigan is burdensome and expensive, so we’re thankful that Perry went through the rigmarole, but it simply shouldn’t be like that to practice your Second Amendment rights.

Let’s talk about gun control for a second. Gille, the stabber, had a rap sheet—assault convictions, mental health issues, a court order against him. Did any of Michigan’s shiny new gun laws stop him? Not a chance. Red flag laws, background checks, you name it—they’re useless against a determined criminal.

But they do tie the hands of people like Perry, who might’ve been disarmed by some politician’s feel-good regulation.

In 2023, we sued the Michigan legislature for shutting out pro-gun voices during their gun control push, and we’re still fighting to repeal every law that turns law-abiding citizens into sitting ducks.

Gun control doesn’t stop knives or lunatics—it just makes heroes harder to come by.

The Traverse City attack lays it bare: when seconds count, the police are minutes away. Sheriff Shea said deputies got there in two minutes flat, but Perry and Kolakowski had already ended the threat. That’s the reality the gun grabbers don’t want you to hear.

Where are the usual suspects— Gretchen Whitmer, Mallory McMorrow, and the whole anti-gun circus—when an armed citizen saves the day? Silent as the grave. They’ll scream about “gun violence” but won’t touch a story like this, where a good guy with a gun made all the difference.

The video evidence is out there, and it’s undeniable: the Second Amendment worked.

Great Lakes Gun Rights is doubling down. We’re fighting to pass Constitutional Carry, repeal “Red Flag”, and kill every law that punishes the law-abiding while criminals run free.

Michigan lawmakers need to wake up and see what happened in Traverse City: an armed citizen stopped a massacre because he was prepared.

We’re calling on every red-blooded Michigander to join us. Sign our petitions, call your legislators, and demand they protect your God-given rights.

For $30 a year or $500 for life, you can stand with us in this fight.

Or you can become a monthly donor to help us fighting for your rights throughout the year.

Derrick Perry didn’t wait for permission to be a hero, and neither should you. The Second Amendment gave him the power to save lives, and Great Lakes Gun Rights will keep fighting to make sure every American has that same chance. Traverse City is proof: when evil comes knocking, it’s the armed citizen who answers.