Juan F. Lopez

On February 1, 2025, Juan F. Lopez, a 42-year-old career and technical education teacher from Hockley, Texas, was attending a student band competition at a Pasadena high school with his family when an 83-year-old gunman opened fire, wounding one person. Lopez immediately charged, grasped the assailant from behind, tackled him to the floor, and forced the gun from his grip — holding the man down for roughly 40 seconds until other bystanders helped restrain him and police arrived. Lopez suffered only minor knee pain. The Carnegie Hero Fund awarded him the Carnegie Medal for Heroism in 2025, citing extraordinary civilian courage.