Chilling Video From Robb Elementary Tells a Disturbing Tale of Delayed Response in Uvalde – Opinion

Since the horrific mass shooting at Robb Elementary in Uvalde, Texas, on May 24th, RedState has reported extensively, both on the incident itself and on the ensuing investigation into law enforcement’s response to it.

Almost immediately following the shooting, questions were raised about the timing of the response: Why did over an hour pass between the shooter’s entering the school and his ultimately being taken down? It was almost as though the shooting had been a case of a active shooter, not merely a barricaded suspect scenario. Perhaps most haunting of all — were any children or teachers shot after the police arrived on the scene? What chance would there have been for any survivors if emergency workers had arrived at the scene in just minutes?

Tony Plohetski from the Austin American-Statesman is still at the top of the story. Plohetski revealed today that the Austin American-Statesman has video footage taken inside the school as well as body camera footage showing how law enforcement responded to the shooter.

This article provides a complete chronology and includes both the edited and full versions of the videos.

(Author’s note: I watched the four-minute video. It’s disturbing and heartwrenching. I don’t intend to watch the full hour-and-twenty-two minute video, but, as noted, both are available in the article.) 

The gunman walks into Robb Elementary School unimpeded, moments after spraying bullets from his semi-automatic rifle outside the building and after desperate calls to 911 from inside and outside the Uvalde school.

After looking around in the corridor, he slows down and flips his head back. He then proceeds to classrooms 112 and 112.

A boy, neatly groomed and wearing glasses, exits the toilet to return to class seconds later. He turns the corner and sees the gunman at the door of the classroom.

The boy runs into the toilet and turns around.

One of the classes is attacked by the gunman. Children scream. Gunfire continues, ceases, and then begins again. The gunfire stops, and then it starts all over again. The cycle continues. And again.

There are three minutes until three more officers rush into the hallway. They crouch down and hurry toward the classrooms. There is a sudden burst or gunfire. The back of one officer is grabbed by the other. The officers quickly flee to the other end of the hall, right below the school surveillance camera.

A 77-minute video recording captured from this vantage point, along with body camera footage from one of the responding officers, obtained by the American-Statesman and KVUE, shows in excruciating detail dozens of sworn officers, local, state and federal — heavily armed, clad in body armor, with helmets, some with protective shields — walking back and forth in the hallway, some leaving the camera frame and then reappearing, others training their weapons toward the classroom, talking, making cellphone calls, sending texts and looking at floor plans, but not entering or attempting to enter the classrooms.

Perhaps anticipating criticism of the decision to publish the disturbing video, the Statesman’s editor, Manny Garcia, penned a column titled: Why the Austin-American Statesman Chose to Publish Video From Inside Robb Elementary. In it, Garcia explains:

Our video is approximately one hour and twenty-two minutes in length. The video is both tragic and heartbreaking to watch. We have had long and thought-provoking discussions before we decided to release the news with KVUE, our news partner.

The Statesman will publish two versions. The first is a short version that has been edited to just under four minutes. The second highlights crucial moments like the gunman’s ease in entering school, his shot into classroom, repeated gunfire and the delays by police to arrest the killer. For 77 minutes, dozens of highly armed officers staged themselves in school corridors before they stormed the classroom and killed the gunman.

The after-action report — officially titled: “Robb Elementary School Attack Response Assessment and Recommendations” — is 26 pages long. The report includes an introduction, detailed timeline, physical assessment, tactical assessment, and a supplement of breaching assessments and opportunities.

Starting at Page 15:

ALERRT teaches that first responders’ main priority in an active shooter situation is to first You can stop
The KillingAnd then Stop Dying (ALERRT & FBI, 2020, pp. 2, 9, 2-15, and 2-16 Inherent
both stopping the killing and dying is the priority of life scale (ALERRT & FBI, 2020, pp. 2-6 &
2-34). The first priority at the top is the preservation of the lives of potential victims/victims.
Second is the safety and security of the officers. Last is the suspicion. These orders mean that we can expect
Officers must take on the risk of saving innocent lives. It is dangerous to respond to active shooters
(Blair & Duron, 2022). Officers could be injured or killed, and there is always the possibility of them being shot.
responding. Every officer must be aware of this when they are promoted.
Orderly.

On Page 16,

Officers who have never been shot at in the past would not be surprised to find themselves overwhelmed.
directed gunfire. This can be especially true if the person was not regularly trained to handle it.
This type of threat is unacceptable. Even after retreating the officers were presented with an obvious threat.
driving force. When the officers arrived at the scene, the suspect was already firing his weapon.
An officer reasonable would conclude that students were being injured in classrooms. There were two things:
The officers knew that the suspect still existed and prevented them accessing the wounds.
The classrooms. These injured people are a driving force (ALERRT & FBI, 2020, p. 2-17) Once
The officers fled, but they could have made an immediate plan to stop him and gain entry to their headquarters.
For the injured. There are many possible solutions that could be implemented.

You can find the full report below.

The Statesman

Steve McCraw from the Texas Department of Public Safety stated that Pete Arredondo the school district’s Police Chief, was the incident commander. That requires a more methodical and slower response to the situation than an active shooter scenario. The police can be charged with any action necessary to prevent a gunman from taking his life. McCraw said that this was an error. McCraw stated that the officers must have confronted and used enough firepower to break into the classrooms and stop the shooting.

McCraw singled Arredondo out for the blame when he resisted officers entering earlier than expected. But the video shows multiple responding agencies on the scene, including officers from the Uvalde Police Department, Uvalde County sheriff’s department, Texas Department of Public Safety, Texas Rangers, U.S.

Garcia points out in his editorial

We know now — thanks to the many news organizations that continue to dig for the facts — that some students quietly called 911 from inside the classroom for help, a critically wounded teacher could hear officers just outside the classroom, and that 911 dispatchers were fielding the calls of desperation.

Also, we know from experience that parents and family members stood outside of the school begging authorities for help.

I’ve never served in law enforcement and won’t pretend to know what it’s like to encounter this sort of bedlam. It is difficult to feel compassion for both the victims and their families, as well as the first responders trying to cope with this tragic incident. However, it’s impossible to watch the video and read the reporting and escape the conclusion that something went terribly wrong here — in addition to the deranged gunman electing to vent his rage on dozens of innocents.

 

Official After Action Report Uvalde: Susie Moore, Scribd

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