Uvalde Officer Had Chance to Shoot Gunman, Feared Hitting Children, Cops Claim
CHANDAN KHANNA/AFP via Getty Images
The response by the Uvalde Police to the Robb Elementary school shooting last month has been detailed further, with a new report indicating one officer had the opportunity to shoot the gunman before he entered the school, but hesitated and held back, fearing he may hit a child.
According to “investigative documents” cited by the New York Times, two officers had opportunities to engage with the shooter before he entered the school. One who patrolled Uvalde schools drove past the parking lot not realizing the gunman was there, and another took cover behind a patrol car and avoided taking a shot as the gunman entered the school, seeing children playing behind him.
The New York Times reported:
At least two law enforcement cars arrived in close succession at the school, according to investigatory documents reviewed by The New York Times. One was driven by an officer from the small police force that patrols Uvalde’s schools. Another arrived less than a minute later, at 11:32 a.m., with officers from the Uvalde Police Department.
Zavala County Chief Deputy Sheriff Ricardo Rios reportedly spoke with the officer who did not take a shot and explained that the officer feared a criminal investigation, should he miss the shooter and hit a bystander.
“I asked him, ‘Why didn’t you shoot? Why didn’t you engage?’ And that’s when he told me about the background,” Rios said, according to the report. “According to the officers, they didn’t engage back because in the background there was kids playing and they were scared of hitting the kids.”
Rios said he did not blame the officer, noting that a Texas Ranger at the scene who took his statement said “every bullet has our names,” referring to law enforcement and saying such pressures lead to “second-guessing.”
The police response to the Uvalde shooting is being scrutinized in several investigations, including one from the Justice Department. After the gunman barricaded himself in a room, it took police more than an hour to breach the room. The gunman was shot and killed after taking more than 20 lives.
