It’s been almost two years since 19 children and two teachers were murdered at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas. Its infamy was twofold: It not only echoed the horrors of Sandy Hook a decade earlier, but it also shined a light on a profound law enforcement failure — hundreds of officers taking more than an hour to subdue a lone gunman; handcuffing parents attempting to rescue their children.
Today, survivors and the families of those killed feel forgotten — “betrayed,” Jesse Rizo, whose niece died in the shooting, told The Texas Tribune — by police and elected officials. To date, several investigations into the law enforcement response have taken place, including a Department of Justice report that found “cascading failures of leadership, decision-making, tactics, policy and training.” On the opposite end of the spectrum, a report from a private investigator hired by the city cleared local police of wrongdoing, even praising some officers.
Bereaved families are now awaiting the outcome of one last investigation, the Tribune reported, a criminal suit filed by Uvalde District Attorney Christina Mitchell, for which a grand jury will decide if any of the nearly 400 federal, state, and local officers involved will be charged.
What to Know Today
Late last month, during her visit to Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, Vice President Kamala Harris urged schools to accept federal resources to help prevent shootings. Among the resources the government offers: guidance from the National Threat Assessment Center, a Secret Service office originally created to assess threats to the president. In its work today, NTAC focuses on identifying “behavioral” traits of mass shooters, in addition to promoting the same “see something, say something” mantra applied to international terrorism. [The Intercept]
New York City plans to test portable gun scanners at a limited number of subway stops after a 90-day waiting period. It will partner with Evolv, a Massachusetts-based company that has been accused of overstating the effectiveness of its software. Mayor Eric Adams made the announcement last Thursday after a spate of recent subway attacks, including a shooting on a crowded train car. As author Jonathan Metzl wrote in an essay for The Trace, incidents like these could be a glimpse of the future. [ABC News/The New York Times]
The Chicago City Council is considering an ordinance that would allow individual alderspersons to decide if they want their wards to continue using ShotSpotter, the controversial gunshot detection system that Mayor Brandon Johnson planned to phase out at the end of the year. [Chicago Sun-Times]
Last week, a judge blocked the release of body-camera footage from a botched raid by the Raleigh Police Department in 2021. According to court records, the subjects of the “quick knock” warrant, Amir and Mirian Ibrahim Abboud and their 11-month-old child, were misidentified; police confused them with their neighbor, who is also Arab. The couple filed a complaint last year for “severe emotional distress and trauma.” [Indy Week]
Archive
In Uvalde, a Community Struggles for Reform Amid Grief: After the funerals, residents continue to pressure Texas officials to address gun access. It may become a fight that spans generations. (November 2022)
