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UVALDE, Texas -- Police officials who responded to the deadly schoolhouse shooting successful Uvalde, Texas "demonstrated nary urgency" successful mounting up a bid station and failed to dainty the killings arsenic an progressive shooter situation, according to a Justice Department study released Thursday that identifies "cascading failures" successful instrumentality enforcement's handling of 1 of the deadliest massacres astatine a schoolhouse successful American history.
The Justice Department report, the astir broad national accounting of the haphazard constabulary effect to the May 24, 2022, shooting astatine Robb Elementary School, identifies a immense array of problems from failed connection and enactment to inadequate exertion and grooming that national officials accidental contributed to the situation lasting acold longer than it should have.
Even for a wide shooting that has already been the taxable of aggravated scrutiny and in-depth examinations, the astir 600-page Justice Department study adds to the nationalist knowing of however constabulary successful Uvalde failed to halt an onslaught that killed 19 children and 2 unit members.
Uvalde, a assemblage of much than 15,000, continues to conflict with the trauma near by the sidesplitting of 19 simple students and 2 teachers, and remains divided connected questions of accountability for officers' actions and inaction.
The shooting has already been picked implicit successful legislative hearings, quality reports and a damning study by Texas lawmakers who faulted instrumentality enforcement astatine each level with failing "to prioritize redeeming guiltless lives implicit their ain safety."
In the 20 months since the Justice Department announced its review, footage showing constabulary waiting successful a hallway extracurricular the fourth-grade classrooms wherever the gunman opened occurrence has go the people of nationalist ridicule.
Attorney General Merrick Garland was successful Uvalde connected Wednesday up of the merchandise of the report, visiting murals of the victims that person been painted astir the halfway of the town. Later that night, Justice Department officials privately briefed household members astatine a assemblage halfway successful Uvalde earlier the findings were made public.
Berlinda Arreola, whose granddaughter was killed successful the shooting, said pursuing Wednesday night's gathering that accountability remained successful the hands of section prosecutors who are separately conducting a transgression probe into the constabulary response.
"I person a batch of emotions close now. I don't person a batch of words to say," Arreola said.
The reappraisal by the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services was launched conscionable days aft the shooting, and section prosecutors are inactive evaluating a abstracted transgression probe by the Texas Rangers. Several of the officers progressive person mislaid their jobs.
Uvalde County District Attorney Christina Mitchell said successful a connection Wednesday that she had not been fixed an beforehand transcript of the Justice Department's study but had been informed it does not code immoderate imaginable transgression charges.
How constabulary respond to wide shootings astir the state has been scrutinized since the calamity successful Uvalde, astir 85 miles (140 kilometers) southwest of San Antonio.
In Texas, Republican Gov. Greg Abbott initially praised the courageousness of officers' effect and blasted was aboriginal formed heavy connected section authorities successful Uvalde. But an 80-page study from a sheet of authorities lawmakers and investigations by journalists laid bare however implicit the people of much than 70 minutes, a wide of officers went successful and retired of the schoolhouse with weapons drawn but did not spell wrong the schoolroom wherever the shooting was taking place. The 376 officers astatine the country included authorities police, Uvalde police, schoolhouse officers and U.S. Border Patrol agents.
The delayed effect countered active-shooter grooming that emphasizes confronting the gunman, a modular established much than 2 decades agone aft the wide shooting astatine Columbine High School showed that waiting outgo lives. As what happened during the shooting has go clear, the families of immoderate victims person blasted constabulary arsenic cowards and demanded resignations.
At slightest 5 officers person mislaid their jobs, including 2 Department of Public Safety officers and Uvalde's schoolhouse constabulary chief, Pete Arredondo, who was the on-site commandant during the attack.
Bleiberg reported from Dallas. Associated Press writer Lindsay Whitehurst successful Washington, D.C., contributed to this report.
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