Uvalde Classroom Door Wasn’t Locked—And Police Didn’t Try To Open It Without A Key, Texas Law Enforcement Official Testifies

Topline

Texas Department of Public Safety Director Steven McCraw issued a scathing assessment Tuesday of local law enforcement’s response to the elementary school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, that killed 19 students and two teachers last month, saying the door was not locked to a classroom where the suspect was holed up as officers spent crucial minutes searching for a key.

Steven C. McCraw, Director and Colonel of the Texas Department of Public Safety, speaks during a … [+] press conference about the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School on May 27, 2022 in Uvalde, Texas. (Photo by Yasin Ozturk/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

Key Facts

McCraw testified during a Texas state senate hearing the door could not be locked from the inside, and there was no indication that officers even attempted to try to open the door while the suspected shooter, 18-year-old Salvador Ramos, was inside—leading him to have “great reasons to believe” the door was never secured.

McCraw also testified that local law enforcement had enough officers on scene to stop the shooter three minutes after he entered the building, calling the response an “abject failure” that was “antithetical” to active shooter protocols developed over the past two decades.

McCraw slammed the response, saying “the only thing stopping a hallway of dedicated officers from entering room 111 and 112 was the on-scene commander.”

The on-scene commander, Uvalde school district police Chief Pete Arredondo, has faced intense criticism for waiting for over an hour for additional tactical teams and equipment after he made the decision that the suspect was barricaded in and wasn’t an active shooter.

McCraw piled on Tuesday, saying, “this was never anything more than an active shooter.”

McCraw revealed that the only radios that worked inside of the west portion of the school where officers were gathered belonged to U.S. Border Patrol agents—and that Arredondo didn’t have his radio with him to begin with, but even if he did, McCraw said it would not have worked.

What We Don’t Know

McCraw testified a teacher thought the door locking mechanism was malfunctioning prior to the shooting and made requests to have it fixed, but it is unclear if the report was investigated.

Big Number

One hour, 14 minutes and eight seconds. That’s how long children waited inside one of the classrooms with the shooter until law enforcement breached the door, McCraw testified. McCraw said a “hooligan” tool that firefighters use to force open doors was available eight minutes after police arrived on the scene, and at least one ballistic shield arrived on scene 19 minutes after the gunman entered the school.

Key Background

Police have faced intense criticism from parents and the public after it was revealed they allowed Ramos to remain inside the school for nearly 80 minutes before he was engaged and shot dead—a move McCraw has previously called the “wrong decision” and that appears to clash with normal active-shooter tactics that encourage police to confront shooters immediately to reduce the loss of life. While police waited for tactical units to go inside the school and rescue their children, parents pleaded with officers outside, and some parents were pinned down and detained for allegedly interfering with the police investigation. During McCraw’s testimony, he made security recommendations to prevent shootings from happening again, like securing the perimeter—even though Robb Elementary School already had a fence around it—and implementing a key card or badge system. He also called to improve the locking mechanism for interior and exterior doors, as a teacher closed a propped open door after she saw the shooter, but the door did not lock when she closed it.

Crucial Quote

Arredondo “waited for a radio, and rifles,” McCraw said. “Then he waited for shields. Then he waited for SWAT. Lastly, he waited for a key that was never needed.”