Because he was afraid of hitting youngsters behind the killer, a Uvalde School District police officer acknowledged to giving up a chance to shoot 18-year-old gunman Salvador Ramos.
The anonymous cop was wielding an AR-15 when he rushed to Robb Elementary School on May 24, according to the admission, which was discovered by the New York Times on Friday.
Ramos was still outside the premises, firing bullets at a nearby funeral home, when he arrived.
According to Chief Deputy Ricardo Rios of adjacent Zavalla County, that cop attempted to shoot Ramos but was unable to do so due to children standing behind him, who he feared might be hit instead.
The officer’s chance of stopping Ramos passed quickly, perhaps in seconds, Rios said. Any shot was further hampered by Ramos’ constant movement, making taking a safe shot even more difficult.
Rios said that cop feared he’d be condemned if he’d opened fire and hurt a child in the process of trying to take down Ramos.
The Times also stated conflicting reports on what the children were doing at the time. The cop who arrived on the scene claiming they were playing, while a deputy from a local sheriff’s officer said they were running from the impending massacre.
The new information adds fuel to the fire that cops could have stopped Ramos before he killed 19 children and two instructors.
The Texas Rangers, the US Justice Department, and a special committee of the Texas Legislature are currently investigating the cops involved.
This admission would mean that officers lost a second chance to halt Salvador Ramos before his rampage inside Robb Elementary School on May 24.
Officials stated a school district police officer had driven by Ramos in the school parking lot without spotting him.
The Zavala County sheriff’s officials responded to the shooting in support of Uvalde and Uvalde County officers.
Rios said he had shared the information with a special Test House committee investigating the school massacre.
Uvalde police officials agreed Friday to speak to the committee investigating, according to a Republican lawmaker leading the probe who had begun to publicly question why the officers were not cooperating sooner.
‘Took a little bit longer than we initially had expected,’ state Rep. Dustin Burrows said.
Burrows expressed his displeasure with Uvalde police on Thursday, tweeting that the vast majority of people had fully participated with their inquiry ‘to help discover the facts,’ and that he didn’t understand why the city’s police department ‘would not want the same.’
He did not specify which officials of the department will meet with the committee, which is scheduled to begin questioning witnesses on the incident in Uvalde on Monday.
Police in Uvalde did not respond to requests for comment.
Law enforcement officials have ceased sharing updates on what they’ve learned about the shooting and the police reaction weeks after one of the bloodiest school shootings in US history.
Their silence comes after authorities gave conflicting and incorrect accounts in the days after the shooting, sometimes withdrawing statements hours after making them.
Officials have also refused to provide media outlets with records requested under public information laws, citing broad exclusions and the ongoing inquiry. It has sparked doubts about whether such documents will be made public, even to the families of the victims.
So far, the state House committee has conducted closed-door interviews with more than a dozen witnesses, including state police, school officials, and school district police.
So far, the committee’s roster of witnesses has omitted Pete Arrendondo, the Uvalde school district police chief, who has been chastised for his behavior during the attack.
Burrows defended the committee interviewing witnesses in private and not revealing their findings so far, saying its members want an accurate account before issuing a report.
‘One person’s truth may be different than another person’s truth,’ Burrows said Friday.
Republican leaders in Texas have advocated for greater mental health funding but not new gun regulations in the aftermath of the shooting.
The 18-year-old gunman allegedly used an AR-15-style semi-automatic rifle, according to authorities. Even as anguished parents outside the school pushed officers to enter, police did not engage the gunman for more than an hour.