A man who sheltered members of Congress fleeing Wednesday’s shooting at a GOP congressional baseball practice said the lawmakers were “just in shock” after they fled the scene.
Ben Childers told CNN he was on the balcony of his second-floor apartment that overlooks the baseball field where House Majority Whip Steve Scalise and others were shot.
He ran downstairs to wave down lawmakers who sprinted and weaved through traffic to find safety from the shooting.
“They were all just in shock,” said Childers, 31.
“Their hands were clearly shaking,” added his wife, Elizabeth Childers, who got the uninjured men water.
Childers soon determined the three men were congressmen, but he would not identify them to CNN.
The congressmen told Childers that Scalise was shot on the field. The couple gave the men their cell phones to call their families and staffers to let them know they were OK.
“All they wanted to do was talk to their families,” Ben said.
After that, one congressman left immediately to return toward the field. The other two headed back to the scene of the shootout about 10 minutes later.
Rep. Rodney Davis later told CNN that he and some lawmakers sought safety in a nearby apartment, though he did not specify whose apartment it was.
“We took off down the street and a Good Samaritan let us into his apartment so we could call 911 and then also call my family,” the Illinois lawmaker told CNN’s Brianna Keilar.
“I never thought I would play a baseball game for charity, go to practice at 6:30 in the morning and have to dodge bullets,” he added.