As of Tuesday, July 12, state and local leaders have yet to release video from Robb Elementary School the day an 18-year-old gunman freely entered the school and holed up in the classroom where he was killed. has 19 pupils and two teachers.
Austin American-Statesman and KVUE Senior Reporter Tony Plohetski shot the video. Two media outlets voted Tuesday to release the footage to be transparent and show the public what happened as they waited for officials to enter the classroom.
The video originally showed a truck crashing in front of Robb Elementary School on May 24 and an 18-year-old police officer walking toward the school building. The video then shows the gunman entering the school and running down the hall to the classroom with the weapon held high.
Five seconds after the officer turns the corner, the video shows the boy walking into the frame.
The child witnessed the first school shooting before fleeing, presumably unharmed. According to the video, the shooter apparently did not see the child.
Video later showed the shooter in the classroom began shooting before entering. In the middle of the shooting, the screams of teachers and students echoed through the classroom.
The video shows the first armed law enforcement officers arriving in the hallways of the school three minutes after the gun was fired. The officers were seen running into the classroom, but fired and rushed back into the hall.
The video shows 13 weapons in the hallway that arrived within the first 30 minutes of the incident. The first shield arrived in less than 20 minutes. Several law enforcement officers were seen in the corridor along with their equipment.
No police officers entered the classroom for more than 70 minutes.
Gov. Greg Abbott, state Rep. Dustin Burrows, the chairman of the Uvalda shooting investigation committee, Texas DPS leaders and many of the victims’ families are urging the public to release the video.
Burrows announced on Twitter Tuesday that he plans to release the video after meeting with the Uvalde family on Sunday.
KVUE and our partners put the Uvalde family at the forefront of our decision-making process. The victims’ families and the Uvalde community called for transparency.
Before releasing the video, we spoke with some of the families of the Uvalde victims and explained what we saw and heard in the video. All but one told us they wanted it The link to this video has been posted. Their only request was that the crying of the children in the classroom be removed. In honor of the deceased family, we suppressed the crying. Commenting on the release of the video on Tuesday, Burrows said he was disappointed by the release but also relieved it had already been released.
“Governor Abbott was disgusted and disappointed that (this video will be missed by the families of the victims and the Uvalde community – those most affected by this tragedy) had the opportunity to see it. Video The Robb School tragedy… and we are grateful that the Uvalde Community received answers. The investigation The Texas Rangers and the FBI are continuing and we look forward to the full results being shared with the victim’s family and the public who fully deserve – the truth about what happened. Sad day.”
