The Uvalde Police Department has come under scrutiny for allowing as many as 78 minutes to pass before entering the room where a shooter massacred 19 children and two adults at Robb Elementary School last Tuesday.
Amid intense controversy about the actions, or lack of actions, by the local police, the department released a statement regarding the events of last Tuesday.
“Our entire department is thankful that the officers did not sustain any life-threatening injuries…” pic.twitter.com/9MmV14MNCf
— Travis Akers (@travisakers) May 28, 2022
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In the statement, officials said, “Our entire department is thankful officers did not sustain any life threatening injuries.”
The line comes as a shock to many, considering the failure of police to act in a timely manner, which resulted in the deaths of so many children.
Officers arrived at the elementary school around 11:35 A.M., according to a timeline constructed by Business Insider.
The gunman entered the building at approximately 11:30 A.M. and ultimately barricaded himself inside a fourth-grade classroom for more than 60 minutes. During that time, he fatally shot 19 students and two teachers.
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Texas Department of Public Safety spokesman Steven McCraw said that cops at the scene of the shooting thought children were “no longer at risk” as they waited an hour for reinforcements.
McCraw was then asked if the parents of the children killed heard you say, “not everything that could possibly have been done as humanly fast as could be done was not done” were deserving of an apology.
“If I thought it would help I would apologize,” McCraw replied.
McCraw said the officers did no believe there was anyone “living anymore and that the subject is now trying to keep law enforcement at bay or entice them to come in and suicide by cop.”
McCraw also confirmed that at least two female students called 911 during the shooting from inside the classrooms that Ramos took over. He said that between 12:43 and 12:47, one of the callers “asked 911 to please send the police now.”
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After that call, the police waited at least three more minutes to enter the room.
The White House has refused to investigate the police response to the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas. They have noted President Biden “has the utmost respect for the men and women of law enforcement.”
“I know that right now, authorities are working to piece together more details of what happened in Uvalde, so we won’t prejudge the result from here at this time,” Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in response to questions on Thursday. “It is always a good idea to look back and try to find any lessons we can learn, especially from tragedies like this, so that we can prevent them moving forward, including the law enforcement response.”
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