Chairman: Voluntary testimony from Uvalde police uncertain
The chairman of a special state House committee taking testimony on the Uvalde school shooting says it's uncertain whether city police officials would testify voluntarily to the committee
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.The chairman of a Texas legislative committee investigating the nation's deadliest school shooting in a decade said Thursday that it's unclear whether the small city of Uvalde's local police department would testify before the panel voluntarily, raising more questions about when details will come out in a case where pressure is mounting for information to be released.
Besides opening and closing statements during a committee hearing in Uvalde, the public was blocked from witnessing testimony. Committee Chairman Rep. Dustin Burrows said Uvalde school district officials — including district police — were forthcoming and transparent.
“There is a question mark, however, about the Uvalde Police Department itself, about whether or not they will visit with us voluntarily,” the Lubbock Republican said after emerging from the closed-door testimony. "And we’ll see if they do that or not.”
The Uvalde Police Department did not respond to requests for comment Thursday.
The committee does have the power to subpoena evidence and testimony. Burrows revealed nothing of the findings from Thursday's testimony, saying a statement would come later. Another hearing is scheduled for Friday.
Questions abound about why officers waited over an hour to breach the classroom where a gunman fatally shot 19 children and two teachers. Steven McCraw, the head of the Texas Department of Public Safety, has said the Uvalde schools police chief — who he described as the incident commander — made the “wrong decision” to not order officers to breach the classroom more quickly to confront the gunman.
Uvalde school district Police Chief Pete Arredondo later said he didn't consider himself the person in charge and assumed someone else had taken control of the law enforcement response. Arredondo has declined repeated requests for comment to The Associated Press.
Law enforcement officials have provided little or conflicting information since the May 24 shooting, sometimes withdrawing statements hours after making them. Officials have declined to offer details, citing ongoing investigation.
Local officials, including Uvalde Mayor Don McLaughlin, have indicated they are frustrated with the lack of information.
The Texas Department of Public Safety is leading the investigation and has said some accounts were preliminary and may change as more witnesses are interviewed. DPS has begun referring questions about the investigation to the Uvalde-area district attorney, Christina Mitchell Busbee.
Some are concerned that Texas officials will use a legal loophole to block records from being released — even to the victims’ families — once the case is closed. The law’s exception protects information from being released in crimes for which no one has been convicted. The Texas Attorney General’s Office has ruled that it applies when a suspect is dead.
___
Find more AP coverage of the Uvalde school shooting: https://apnews.com/hub/uvalde-school-shooting.