[XavierBreath]

PUYALLUP, Wash. -- The most seriously injured of seven people hit by gunshots in last fall's Tacoma Mall shooting walked out of a hospital Friday - under his own power.

"OK, guys, I've been out of commission for a while - what's going on?" Brendan "Dan" McKown, 38, quipped as he made his laborious way to the sidewalk with the aid of a walker.

Doctors had said his spinal injury could leave him paralyzed, but McKown was determined to walk again.

"God doesn't do miracles halfway," he told KOMO-TV as he left Good Samaritan Hospital in this community near his Tacoma hometown. Referring to the spinal injury, he added, "At least you know I have a backbone."

He has feeling now in his legs, and is walking with the help of braces and the walker.

McKown, who was assistant manager of the Excalibur Cutlery and Gifts store at the mall, tried to stop the gunman. He has legally carried a concealed handgun for years.

In the next chapter of his life, McKown said he wants to be a motivational speaker, perhaps for kids, and wants to resume his work with a comedy troupe.

Dominick Sergio Maldonado, 20, faces 15 criminal charges in the Nov. 20 rampage, including one count of attempted murder. He's being held on $2 million bail.

Authorities say Maldonado marched through the mall, firing an assault rifle and a machine pistol, before ducking into a record store and taking several hostages. He released them unharmed after a four-hour standoff.

Maldonado's defense lawyer, Sverre Staurset, said his client never meant to hurt anyone. According to court documents, Maldonado told detectives he had been humiliated during a difficult childhood and that recent problems made him want to be "heard."

Link
Yep, he's very very lucky.