Results of an investigation into the 2022 shooting at Robb Elementary School in Texas indicated some children who were killed may have survived had officers followed active-shooter protocols.
UVALDE, Texas — Children's lives may have been saved if officers had responded differently to a gunman who opened fire at Robb Elementary School, the Justice Department said in its report on the 2022 mass shooting that killed 21 people, including 19 students.
Poor coordination, training and execution of active-shooter protocol contributed to a law enforcement response that can only be described as a “failure,” the report said.
The 600-page findings describe a chaotic scene that should have triggered several coordinated responses by law enforcement officers who first arrived at the school. Instead, a dearth of leadership contributed to officers failing to recognize an active shooter and waiting far too long to engage the gunman.
Nineteen students and two teachers were killed, and 17 others were injured.
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Disturbing new details outlined in the report reveal that authorities relayed incorrect information to some parents in the aftermath of the shooting about whether their children had survived or been killed.
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"The resulting delay provided an opportunity for the active shooter to have additional time to reassess and reengage his deadly actions inside the classroom," the report said. "It also contributed to a delay in medical interventions with the potential to impact survivability.”
The Justice Department said that there were at least 10 "stimulus events" over the span of more than an hour that could have driven law enforcement officers to take steps under active shooter protocols to "immediately stop the killing."
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Video from the scene released days later showed parents in anguish, begging officers to charge into the school and save their children. They were outraged when, soon after the shooting, authorities announced that Uvalde police had responded within minutes. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said at the time that it “could have been worse” had law enforcement officers not run toward the gunfire. He later said he had been “misled”about the response.
