Nicholas Waller had committed two carjackings on the night of April 4th, 2009, when he was chased on foot by Independence Police Sgt. Steven Boles. Waller had shot at Boles five times, missing each time, when Boles managed to fire back three times, hitting Waller in the chest.

Waller was then knocked down by a police cruiser driven by Sgt. Barry Huwar, whose dash-cam captured the entire incident.

“I thought my life was over when I started taking the gunshots and I couldn’t get my gun out,” said Boles. “I feel God put me on my knees that day and allowed me to persevere.”

Waller had just carjacked two different drivers including a pizza delivery driver at an Independence 7-11. He abandoned the car in front of a nearby home and took off on foot only to be stopped a minute later by Sgt. Boles, shooting at him before Boles could get a word out.

On Thursday, Nicholas Waller apologized in court, blaming his problems on years of drug and alcohol abuse, saying he started sniffing glue at age 12. He had already served years in prison for six prior felonies including assault on a law enforcement officer.

“Everyday I put the uniform on I realize it could happen again,” said Boles.

Jackson County prosecutor Jim Kanatzar called Waller’s attack on Boles an attack on all police everywhere.

“It’s a violence against all police officers who stand up everyday and try to protect society,” said Kanatzar. “We felt that a life sentence was appropriate in this case, we felt consecutive life sentences was appropriate in this case.”

Waller will be eligible for parole in 25 1/2 years