Justice Department Releases Report on Deadly 2022 Attack

(RepublicanPress.org) – On May 24, 2022, Salvador Ramos walked into Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, carrying an AR-15 style rifle, and murdered 21 people, including two teachers and 19 children. While many officers responded to the scene, it took them over an hour to enter the building. Meanwhile, the 18-year-old shooter was terrorizing those inside. The grieving community was in an uproar over the police response, and the Department of Justice (DOJ) looked into the matter.

On January 18, the Associated Press reported that the DOJ released its report on the shooting. The comprehensive investigation found the Uvalde Police Department displayed “no urgency” and neglected to treat the incident as an active shooter situation properly. The nearly 600-page report highlighted multiple “cascading failures” of first responders.

In a new report, the Justice Department says police officials who responded to the deadly school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, "demonstrated no urgency" in setting up a command post and failed to treat the killings as an active shooter situation.https://t.co/lrAciMNPPy

— 13WHAM (@13WHAM) January 19, 2024

Attorney General Merrick Garland held a press conference in Uvalde on January 18 to discuss the report and answer questions. He said the DOJ assessment included recommendations for training so police are properly prepared and communication and command structure is in place before an incident in the future. Garland also said the DOJ consulted experts all over the country on the subject of mass shootings to put together a roadmap for police moving forward. The AG spoke to the families of the victims before releasing the report, telling them that the DOJ’s first priority was to honor their loved ones and that they “deserved better.” Berlinda Arreola, who lost her granddaughter that day, attended the meeting. According to reports, she said she was filled with emotion and didn’t “have a lot of words to say.”

Garland said the response and the actions that happened afterward should have never happened. He hoped the report would help prevent something like the failed response in Uvalde from ever happening again.

According to PBS, at least five officers were fired from their jobs following the Uvalde tragedy. Initially, Texas Governor Greg Abbott (R) praised the police department for its response, but a subsequent report made the officers’ failures clear.