'He saved many lives': Waffle House hero James Shaw Jr is hailed by Tennessee lawmakers in a resolution praising his 'indescribable bravery'

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Waffle House hero James Shaw has told Tennessee lawmakers he faced 'the true test of a man' when he wrestled an AR-15 off a crazed and naked gunman during Sunday's mass shooting.

Speaking on the floor of the state's House of Representatives on Tuesday, James Shaw Jr, 29, insisted he acted to save his own life when he rushed gunman Travis Reinking, before grabbing his weapon and pushing him out of the door.

'I never thought I'd be in a room with all the eyes on me, but you know, I'm very grateful to be here,' Shaw told House members, who passed a resolution praising him for saving numerous lives.

Speaking on the floor of the state's House of Representatives on Tuesday, James Shaw Jr, 29, insisted he acted to save his own life when he rushed gunman Travis Reinking

Brennan McMurray, who was dining with Shaw, his best friend, at the restaurant, also spoke on the floor of the House. 

He told representatives that Shaw 'sometimes doesn't listen to me', before turning to his friend and adding, 'and this, by far, is the best time you haven't listened to me'.

The resolution passed by the house read: 'No matter his motivations, Mr. Shaw is indeed a hero; his actions on that fateful morning are unfathomable to most, indescribable by even the chief of police, and very poignant to the citizens of Nashville, who are deeply grateful for his brave actions in the face of extreme adversity that saved many lives.'

Shaw, the father of a four-year-old girl, initially hid in the toilet but Reinking shot through the door, grazing his forearm, and the father-of-one decided it was time to fight back.

'I acted in a blink of a second. When he reloaded his clip, which felt like 30 minutes. I looked at him, and he wasn't looking at me. He just had the barrel down. It was like, 'Do it now. Go now.' I just took off,' he told the New York Times.

'I hit him with the door and the gun was kind of jammed up. I grabbed it from him and I threw it over the counter top.' 

'I never thought I'd be in a room with all the eyes on me, but you know, I'm very grateful to be here,' Shaw told House members. He is pictured waving to legislators with the hand he injured during the attack

A member of the Tennessee House of Representatives pats Shaw on the back as the house passed a resolution calling him a 'hero' 

Shaw then chased the killer out of the diner while the fleeing man hurled abuse at him for intervening. 'I just wanted to live, and he was, like, astonished, that I wanted to live,' he recalled.

Shaw said he has since gone to see some of the shooting victims in the hospital and they all remembered him from the day. He apologized to the people whose loved ones died in the attack.

On Monday, Shaw attended a memorial service at Mount Zion Church, three miles from the Waffle House in Nashville where the shooting took place.

Shaw was grazed by a bullet and got second degree burns on his hand from where he grabbed the gun barrel and wrestled the rifle from the gunman

He joined more than a hundred mourners for four minutes of silence to remember the four victims: Joe Perez, 20; Akilah Dasilva, 23; Taurean C. Sanderlin, 29; and Deebony Groves, 21.

At a press conference that same day, Shaw insisted he was 'just a regular guy', adding: 'It feels selfish. I was just trying to get myself out. I saw the opportunity and pretty much took it.

'I'd rather you regard me as James, you know, just a regular person. Because I feel like everybody can do pretty much what I did.'

The Tennessee State Senate also honored Shaw on Tuesday.

Davidson County Sheriff Daron Hall said Tuesday that Reinking has been 'compliant' and 'cooperative' since he was transferred to the jail late Monday after he was captured near the apartment where he lived.

Reinking is wearing a vest known informally as a 'suicide smock' and will remain under close observation at a maximum-security facility in Nashville.

Also on Tuesday, General Sessions Judge Michael Mondelli revoked the suspect's $2 million bond after an outcry from the local community.

Technically, Reinking could have walked out of jail if his family had posted 10 percent or $200,000 with a bonding company - although this would have almost certainly led to the bond immediately being increased to prevent this. 

Reinking, suspected of killing four people in a late-night shooting at a Waffle House restaurant, is escorted into the Hill Detention Center in Nashville on Monday

A worker vacuums up shattered glass outside the Waffle House restaurant in Nashville where the shooting happened on Sunday

Reinking is charged with four counts of criminal homicide. Police say he opened fire outside the restaurant with an AR-15 rifle and then stormed the restaurant, wearing only a green jacket. Four other people were wounded in the shooting.

Reinking escaped on foot from the restaurant and shed his only item of clothing.

By the time he was captured in the woods nearby, police had searched his apartment, and found the key fob to a stolen BMW they had recovered in the parking lot days earlier. The BMW theft had not initially been tied to Reinking.

Nashville Police Department Lt. Carlos Lara told reporters Reinking was arrested Monday after detectives were tipped to the suspect's presence by some construction workers.

He carried a black backpack with a silver semi-automatic weapon and .45-caliber ammunition.

The arrest ended a 24-hour manhunt involving more than 160 law enforcement officers, but it left troubling unanswered questions about official responses to months of bizarre behavior before the restaurant attack, including encounters with police in Illinois and Colorado and an arrest at the White House that raised red flags.

Deebony Groves, 21, and Akilah Dasilva, 23, were also killed when the gunman stormed in and opened fire with an assault rifle

Restaurant worker Taurean C. Sanderlin, 29, and 20-year-old customer Joe R. Perez were among the four shot dead by a gunman at a Nashville Waffle House on Sunday

Police in Colorado say the co-owner of a business where Reinking worked described him as appearing paranoid and delusional at times.

A co-worker told a detective the man was infatuated with Taylor Swift and claimed to be a sovereign citizen who is not subject to any government laws.

Back in Illinois last June, Reinking barged into a community swimming pool and jumped in wearing only underwear and a pink woman's coat.

That same day, an employee at his family's business, J&J Cranes, said he emerged from an apartment above the office wearing a pink dress, clutching a rifle and yelling profanities.

That same month, Reinking was arrested by the U.S. Secret Service after he entered a restricted area near the White House and refused to leave, saying he wanted to meet President Donald Trump.

The suspect told Washington, D.C., police he was a sovereign citizen and had a right to inspect the grounds, according to an incident report.

On Monday, Shaw attended a memorial service at Mount Zion Church, three miles from the Waffle House in Nashville where the shooting took place 

Reinking was not armed at the time, but at the FBI's request, Illinois police revoked his state firearms card.

Four guns, including the AR-15 used in the shootings, were transferred to his father, a procedure allowed under Illinois law.

Tazewell County Sheriff Robert Huston said Jeffrey Reinking pledged he would 'keep the weapons secure and out of the possession of Travis.'

Don Aaron, a Nashville Police spokesman, said Reinking's father 'has now acknowledged giving them back' to his son.

Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives special Agent Marcus Watson said Monday that his father's action is 'potentially a violation of federal law.' 

The AR-15 (above) used in the Waffle House shooting was among Reinking's four weapons that the FBI confiscated in October following an incident at the White House