January 1, State Officials Condemn Police Officer’s Response to Uvalde Shooting

Texas state officials say local police should not have waited 48 minutes to engage with the gunman in the shooting at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas, that claimed the lives of 19 children and two adults.

Steven McCraw, the director of the Texas Department of Public Safety, addressed the issue at a press conference on Friday, saying: “From the benefit of hindsight, where I’m sitting now, of course, it was not the right decision. It was the wrong decision. There’s no excuse for that.”

Despite audible gunshots during the 48-minute period, McCraw said the onsite commander believed the situation had transitioned from an active shooter to a barricaded subject.

Police waited for tactical teams to arrive to confront Ramos. U.S. Border Patrol agents eventually used a master key to enter the classroom and fatally shot the shooter, McCraw said.

“He was convinced at that time that there was no more threat to the children and that the subject was barricaded and that they had time to organize with the proper equipment to go in,” McCraw said.

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Texas official: Police made ‘wrong decision’ to wait on breaching Uvalde classroom