DOJ to release evaluation of Robb Elementary School shooting
UVALDE – On Jan. 18, the Department of Justice is expected to release their evaluation of the response to the deadly mass shooting at Robb Elementary School.
The report is expected to provide an independent account of police actions that day and best practices to help first responders during future active shooter events.
Nineteen children and two teachers were killed when a gunman opened fire inside the school in May 2022.
More than 300 law enforcement officers were at the scene of the shooting, yet it took 77 minutes to take the gunman down.
A report released last year by the Advanced Law Enforcement Rapid Response Training (ALERRT) Center identified three missed opportunities to slow or stop the gunman. The nearly 80-page report found that "egregiously poor decision-making" led to hundreds of heavily armed officers waiting in the hallway as the gunman fired into two fourth-grade classrooms.
At least five officers have lost their jobs, including two Department of Public Safety officers and Uvalde's school police chief, Pete Arredondo, who was the on-site commander during the attack.
The town of over 15,000 has remained divided on moving forward and seeking accountability for the responding officers. Some family members of those killed have expressed frustration at the delay of investigations.
Uvalde County District Attorney Christina Mitchell said in December that a criminal investigation into the police response will continue into this year before she can present her findings to a grand jury.
