Anger is mounting as videos have surfaced showing police officers fighting with parents who were begging them to go in and stop the shooter at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas.
Some reports indicate the shooter may have been inside, where 19 children were murdered, for up to an hour.
The killer, according to multiple reports, arrived at the school at about 11:30 a.m. Tuesday morning after crashing his truck. It’s been reported that a school resource officer was on the scene but was unable to prevent him from entering the school. There is some debate as to whether the two exchanged gunfire.
At 11:43, the elementary school posted on Facebook about a lockdown due to gunshots in the area, prompting parents to start arriving at the scene. They posted again at 12:17 p.m. about an active shooter on campus.
A border patrol agent was eventually able to get inside and the killer was taken down at 1:06.
Police waited to enter Texas school as shooter went on killing spree: witness https://t.co/uViENRFy8D pic.twitter.com/9XVGg60yqQ
— New York Post (@nypost) May 26, 2022
Details are still quite unclear, but reportedly the gunman had barricaded himself inside a single classroom where all of the victims were found. Steve McGraw, the Texas Department of Public Safety Director, indicates the gunman could have been in the school for 40 minutes to an hour.
Part of the problem, according to sources who spoke to the Daily Mail, is that police were unable to break into the classroom and waited for a staff member to open the door with a key.
Witnesses said they begged for police officers outside of Robb Elementary to do something to save their children.
Juan Carranza, a witness at the scene, told the Associated Press he heard a woman shout to officers, “Go in there! Go in there!”
Javier Cazares, whose daughter Jacklyn was killed in the attack, said he suggested to others outside, “Let’s just rush in because the cops aren’t doing anything like they are supposed to.”
Indeed, a video posted online, which appears to show the scene, shows people yelling and screaming as police push people back from the perimeter. Some appear to have been tackled to the ground.
It is a heartbreaking clip to watch knowing what is taking place behind these officers.
This video make so much more sense now. The cops literally stopped parents from helping their kids. pic.twitter.com/zhQfUjlpjd https://t.co/DqgZUH3uCC
— Matt Novak (@paleofuture) May 26, 2022
“They were unprepared,” Cazares said.
If you’re a police officer unprepared for a school shooting, perhaps it’s time to find a new line of work.
Another video shows anxious parents pleading with police officers to go into the school and stop the carnage.
One individual can be heard shouting, “Y’all keep fighting with us, go fight that mfer!”
Video of Uvalde parents with cops — “y’all keep fighting with us, go fight that mfer!” pic.twitter.com/icDG2J595a
— ✨TheStarsAtNight ✨ (@Star5AtNight) May 26, 2022
The Wall Street Journal published an incredible, almost unbelievable anecdote.
Mother Angeli Rose Gomez had to drive 40 miles to reach the school after learning of the lockdown. Once there, she was put into handcuffs.
After being released, she jumped the fence, ran into the school herself, and fled with her children.
A mom of two children at Uvalde was put in handcuffs after urging police and law enforcement to enter the school.
Once freed from her cuffs, she jumped the school fence, ran inside and sprinted out with her kids.
New from @WSJ: https://t.co/SYdgysw0gF pic.twitter.com/ZCadllw9aT
— Megan Menchaca (@meganmmenchaca) May 26, 2022
The footage is reminiscent of Broward County Sheriff’s Deputy Scot Peterson who, during the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High shooting in 2018 in Parkland, Florida, which claimed the lives of 17 students, hid outside.
Peterson has since been charged with negligence and child neglect. He was released on bail and the trial is scheduled for this fall.
Peterson’s defense attorney, Mark Eiglarsh, told the Miami Herald, “Most law enforcement officers are dedicated and well-intended, doing the best they can with the limited information they have while encountering the most extreme and stressful of situations.”
“The court of public opinion is unfortunately so quick to judge and assess blame to responding officers who are operating with the best of intentions on behalf of the public that they serve,” he added.
Yes, a rush to judgment is in nobody’s interest, but the videos in both Peterson’s case and the Uvalde police case are pretty damning.
Peterson was labeled a “coward” by then-President Trump after his story emerged.
“That’s a case where somebody was outside, they’re trained, they didn’t act properly or under pressure or they were a coward,” Trump said.
“He doesn’t know. He wasn’t there.” Parkland school resource officer Scot Peterson responds to comments President Trump made about him after the school shooting, including when Trump said he thought Peterson didn’t love the kids pic.twitter.com/bWaETluVjo
— TODAY (@TODAYshow) June 6, 2018
And here we are again, with police standing outside an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas.
I have family members that are in law enforcement and I fully understand protocol and such, but those parents in the above video were willing to risk their lives to save their babies. Why weren’t the cops?
There is no excuse. If you have a shield on your chest and you hear gunshots going off in an elementary school, then you need to act. And if your superiors are telling you to stand outside and wait while children are dying, then rip that shield off and do what you have to do.
Some of those parents may have died trying – But I’m not aware of anybody that wouldn’t have rather died trying to save their child’s life than stand around and let some monster take it instead.
Texas officials have launched an investigation into the Uvalde police response to the shooting.
This article was originally published by the Political Insider. Read the original article.
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