Everything we’ve heard about the police response to the school shooting in Uvalde has been simply mind-boggling.
The latest report contains a tidbit we’ve not heard before — and it’s one of the worst examples of a mistake that cost lives… maybe ALL the lives.
The latest info comes from ALERRT, the Advanced Law Enforcement Rapid Response Training Center at Texas State University. They point out multiple missed opportunities to engage with or even stop the school shooter. And the most upsetting news is, cops could have taken him down before he even entered Robb Elementary that fateful morning.
Police did not previously reveal this fact to the public, but it turns out at one point a Uvalde officer had a shot on the killer ONE MINUTE BEFORE he entered the school. But he didn’t take it. Wednesday’s report reveals the officer asked his supervisor’s permission to take the shot — but the supervisor either did not hear the request or too too long to respond, it’s unclear. Either way, no answer was given. And so the cop let the killer walk in.
You may wonder why the officer didn’t take the initiative and just fire. After all, what could be clearer than the necessity to shoot in this instance? Was he worried about getting in trouble? Probably not. The Texas Penal Code, as noted in the ALERRT report, says an individual is justified in using deadly force when the individual reasonably believes the deadly force is immediately necessary to prevent the commission of murder. No, according to the report, the officer said he was afraid of possibly shooting a child in his attempt to hit the gunman.
That, attest the experts, was not a sensible fear in the situation. The report concludes:
“A reasonable officer would conclude in this case, based upon the totality of the circumstances, that use of deadly force was warranted.”
Shockingly that was not the only opportunity police had. Based on the timeline, ALERRT determined another first responding officer was on the scene when the killer was still in the parking lot. However, the cop was driving through the lot “at a high rate of speed” and in his hurry did not spot the shooter. They believe the officer may have seen the gunman and thus been able to engage if only he had driven a bit slower or parked his car right away and approached the school on foot — instead of barreling through the lot like he was in an action movie.
The report included issues with other police strategies, including apparently forming up across the hall from one another so they couldn’t fire without hitting other cops. Wow. You can read the whole thing HERE.
Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick said about the damning new information:
“ALERRT’s 26-page report outlining the attack on Robb Elementary School in complete detail was very difficult for me to read today as it will be for all Texans.”
He also pointed out this isn’t the end — reports from the FBI, the Texas Rangers, and the Uvalde County DA are on the way, too. Sounds like the next few months are going to be worse and worse for the Uvalde police.
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