U.S. Border Patrol agents who rushed to the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, in 2022 failed to establish command and had inadequate training to confront what became one of the nation’s deadliest classroom attacks, according to a federal report released Thursday.
Nearly 200 U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers were involved in the response, more than any other law enforcement agency.
The gunman was inside the classroom for more than 70 minutes before a tactical team, led by Border Patrol, went inside and killed the shooter.
Some victims’ family members bristled over federal investigators identifying no one deserving of discipline.
“The failure of arriving law enforcement personnel to establish identifiable incident management or command and control protocols led to a disorganized response to the Robb Elementary School shooting,” the report stated.
One Border Patrol agent said he couldn’t determine who was in command because there were so many agencies.
Some Border Patrol agents drove more than 70 miles (113 kilometers) to the school, which is located near the U.S-Mexico border.
According to messages between agents in the Border Patrol’s tactical unit, one agent wrote at 11:44 a.m., “Get everyone to Robb school in Uvalde.
Multiple federal and state investigations have laid bare cascading problems in law enforcement training, communication, leadership and technology, and questioned whether officers prioritized their own lives over those of children and teachers.
He has said he should not have been considered the incident commander and has been “scapegoated” into shouldering the blame for law enforcement failures that day.
You. s. A federal report made public on Thursday claims that Border Patrol officers who responded quickly to the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, in 2022 were ill-prepared to deal with what turned out to be one of the deadliest classroom attacks in the country and missed their opportunity to establish command. However, investigators found that the agents had not broken any rules, and no disciplinary action was suggested.
The approximately 200-page report from the U.S. s. The Robb Elementary School shooting, in which a teenage gunman with an AR-style rifle killed 19 students and two teachers inside a fourth-grade classroom, is not considered to be the result of a deliberate police response, according to the Office of Professional Responsibility for Customs and Border Protection. Around 200 U.S. S. Customs and Border Protection officers were involved in the response, more than any other law enforcement agency.
Before the Border Patrol-led tactical team entered the classroom and killed the gunman, the shooter had been there for more than 70 minutes.
Largely repeating the chaos, confusion, and multiple police errors that have already been exposed by other damning government reports, the report was allegedly started to “provide transparency and accountability,” according to the agency. The fact that federal investigators found no one deserving of punishment infuriated some victims’ relatives.
As per the report, “the Robb Elementary School shooting response was disorganized due to arriving law enforcement personnel’s failure to establish identifiable incident management or command and control protocols.”. “During the event, no law enforcement officer ever established command at the school in a clear and concise manner, which resulted in delays, inaction, and possibly additional deaths. “.
Investigators “determined none of the CBP personnel operating at the scene were found to have violated any rule, regulation, or law, and no CBP personnel were referred for disciplinary action,” according to a statement released by Customs and Border Protection. “.
The victims’ families have been demanding answers for a long time regarding the tardiness of the police response.
Although he had not seen the report, family members had informed Jesse Rizo, whose niece Jacklyn Cazares was one of the students killed, and he expressed disappointment that no one was held accountable.
School board member Rizo of Uvalde said, “We’ve expected certain outcomes after these investigations, and it’s been letdown after letdown.”.
Report findings, according to federal officials, were intended to ascertain whether agents were adhering to pertinent laws and regulations and whether there was anything that could be done to enhance their performance going forward.
The report describes a state of chaos and lists numerous breakdowns.
Because there were so many agencies, one Border Patrol agent claimed he was unable to identify who was in charge. Investigators were informed by another agent that he was working an overtime shift when he hurried to the school and was informed by a state trooper that “the chief is in the room with the guy.”. That, he said, made him think there was a standoff, so he started managing traffic.
The school is situated close to the U.S. border, and some Border Patrol agents traveled more than 70 miles (113 kilometers) there. S-Mexico border. Investigators were informed by an agent that the scene “had all the lights and chaos of a Hollywood movie.”. Another supervisor reported that he searched for a command post but that nobody was aware of its location.
A Border Patrol agent wrote at 11:44 a.m., based on messages exchanged amongst members of the tactical unit. me. “Get everyone to Uvalde’s Robb School. The guy with the AK/AR is possibly a shooter. An agent replies a minute later, stating that the subject is being blocked. “.
Managing a shooter behind a locked door and determining medical needs were not covered in agents’ active shooter training, according to the report’s findings.
In addition to over 90 state police officers, nearly 400 local, state, and federal officers also responded. Numerous state and federal investigations have exposed a chain of events involving leadership, technology, communication, training, and law enforcement, and they have also raised concerns about whether or not officers put their personal safety ahead of that of students and instructors.
Charges for crimes are currently pending against two of the responding cops. Both former school employee Adrian Gonzales and former Uvalde school police chief Pete Arredondo have entered not guilty pleas to numerous accusations of endangering and abandoning children. Arredondo requested last week that the indictment be set aside by the court. He has stated that he was “scapegoated” into taking responsibility for the day’s law enforcement shortcomings and that he shouldn’t have been named the incident commander.
A vast array of audio and video recordings from the day of the shooting, including 911 calls made by students inside the classroom, were made public by the city last month. According to Uvalde police, more footage that hasn’t been released to the public was found, leading the department to place an employee on paid leave on Wednesday. The city has not revealed what appears in the video.
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