UVALDE, Texas (AP) – The Justice Department said Sunday it will review law enforcement’s response to the Texas school shooting, an unusual federal look back caused by questions about change and sometimes contradictory information from authorities who have infuriated a community in shock. and pity.
Department spokesman Anthony Coley said the review would be conducted fairly, impartially and independently and that the findings would be made public. The announcement came as President Joe Biden visited Uvalde, where he and First Lady Jill Biden paid their respects at a memorial to 19 students and two teachers killed Tuesday at Robb Elementary School.
The aim of the review, requested by the mayor, is to “provide an independent account of the actions and response of law enforcement that day, and identify lessons learned and best practices to help first responsible for preparing for and responding to active shooter events, ”Coley said. he said in a statement.
The review is the department’s Community Police Services Office. It was not immediately clear how the review would be carried out, whether law enforcement officials could be forced to cooperate in the review, and when it could be completed.
This review is somewhat rare and most post-action reports that occur after a mass shooting are usually compiled by local law enforcement agencies or outside groups. The Justice Department conducted similar reviews after 14 people were killed in a terrorist attack in San Bernardino, California, in 2015, and after the mass shooting at the Pulse Nightclub in Orlando, Florida, the deadliest attack on the LGBTQ community of the history of the United States that left 49 dead and 53 wounded.
Frustration, anger and questions about the police response escalated on Friday after authorities revealed that despite repeated calls to 911 from students and teachers, the school district police chief had said more than a dozen officers waiting in the school hallway. Officials said they believed the suspect was barricaded inside adjoining classrooms and that there was no longer any active attack.
The revelation caused more pain and raised new questions about whether more lives were lost because officers failed to act more quickly to stop the gunman, who was eventually killed by Border Patrol tactical officers.
Biden has not spoken publicly about the police response to the shooting.
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Balsamo reported from Washington.
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