PROVIDENCE, R.I. — What Michael Black initially mistook for the sound of balloons popping at a hockey game quickly turned into a nightmare when he realized gunshots were echoing through the Rhode Island arena. While crowds fled in panic, Black shouted for his wife to “run, run” before making a split-second decision to charge toward the gunman.
Black succeeded in jamming his left hand into the chamber of Robert Dorgan’s weapon, temporarily disabling it before attempting to wrestle the shooter to the ground. However, Dorgan, who had a background in bodybuilding, lifted Black off his feet until two additional Good Samaritans arrived to help overpower the attacker. Video footage captured one person placing Dorgan in a chokehold.
The gunman collapsed with Black on top of him, but the confrontation ended tragically when Dorgan produced a second firearm and shot himself while making eye contact with Black. Throughout the entire encounter, Black said Dorgan remained completely silent.
“The first thought was the safety of my wife. And the second thought was, because the bullets were coming out, was to focus in on the gun,” Black explained. “Get the gun and then subdue the shooter.”
Pawtucket authorities identified the gunman as Robert Dorgan, who also used the names Roberta Esposito and Roberta Dorgano. The Monday evening attack claimed the lives of Dorgan’s former spouse Rhonda Dorgan and their grown son Aidan Dorgan.
Three additional victims suffered injuries in the shooting: Rhonda’s parents Linda and Gerald Dorgan, along with family friend Thomas Geruso. All three remained hospitalized in critical condition as of Wednesday.
According to Pawtucket police, the group of “courageous citizens” who intervened in the attack “undoubtedly prevented further injury and increased the chances of survival for the injured.” Besides Black, Robert Rattenni and Ryan Cordeiro received recognition for subduing the gunman. Additionally, Chris Librizzi and Glenn Narodowy, both former Rhode Island firefighters and EMTs, along with nurse Maryann Rattenni, administered emergency medical care immediately following the shooting.
“I look at it as being fortunate, saddened tremendously in the loss, but fortunate that a small group of people could make a difference,” Black shared during a virtual interview Thursday while visiting colleges in South Carolina with his son.
While investigators have not officially addressed questions about Dorgan’s gender identity, calling such matters irrelevant to their case, divorce documents from 2020 reveal that gender identity issues contributed to the end of Dorgan’s nearly three-decade marriage. Dorgan’s social media presence indicated transgender identity and alignment with far-right political views.
Black described watching Dorgan move deliberately through the seating area, intent on harming more people. While restraining the shooter’s head with his knee, Black observed that Dorgan carried extra ammunition magazines containing “quite a few bullets.”
After Dorgan’s death, witnesses shifted their focus to helping the five shooting victims bleeding among the bleachers. Law enforcement arrived within minutes, and Black, nursing his wounded hand, was led to the parking area where he found his wife waiting.
“My wife saw me and she ran underneath the yellow tape, kind of grabbed me from behind, and we gave a big hug,” Black recalled. “She said, ‘I heard you helped with the shooter. And she says, what’s all the blood? I said, ‘I got my hand caught in the gun.’ And then she said, ‘Honey, I don’t know whether I should be proud of you, but I’m pissed off at you for putting yourself in that situation.’”
While receiving medical treatment at the hospital, a nurse praised Black as a hero — recognition that has been extended to all three men who intervened. Black struggled with accepting that designation.
“I said I don’t feel like I’m a hero right now,” Black reflected. “I looked up and I was feeling for the family. So I started getting some tears in my eyes. And then she got tears in her eyes, too. It was just a moment of decompression at that point.”
