Can Parents Sue Uvalde Police for Refusing to Save their School Kids?

NO! Uvalde shooting reminds parents police have NEVER had a legal duty to protect elementary school children

[Page Updated May 28, 2022] Previously, I explained that unless the police assume an affirmative duty to protect you, there has never been a historical duty for police to protect individuals in England or the United States. The same applies if there is a mass shooting at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas, according to the U.S. Supreme Court and ancient common law.

The Supreme Court has re-affirmed this common law framework in the Warren case and its progeny like Castle Rock, etc. Here it’s no different; no elementary school district police officer owed parents a legal duty to do anything.

Non-Police Officer Parents Arrested, Tazed and Pepper Sprayed?

There was a school shooting on Tuesday, May 24, 2022, at Robb Elementary School in the town of Uvalde, Texas. Nineteen children and two teachers were killed in the massacre. Parents around the country are angry that police refused to go in quickly. The gunman, identified by cops as Salvador Ramos, was 18 years old and pronounced dead at the scene.

We are hearing reports of parents being pepper sprayed, handcuffed, and tased by police for trying to go in and save their kids in disgust over the law enforcement response. (We found out on May 26, 2022, that one woman was successful in escaping police and got credit for getting her children away from the Robb Elementary School gunman.)

Off Duty, Border Patrol Agent Borrows a Gun and Rescues His Daughter From School Shooting?

An off-duty U.S. Border Patrol agent Jacob Albarado, whose deeply saddened and frightened wife, Trisha, worked as a teacher at the school, texted him. He was at a barbershop getting ready for a haircut. The couple’s daughter Jayda, a second grader, was also in the school.

Her text stated: “There’s an active shooter,” “Help,” and “I love you.” Acting quickly, he borrowed a shotgun from the barber, rushed to the school, and saved lives during the Robb Elementary school shooting.

After arriving at the Robb Elementary school shooting scene, the off-duty agent, out of uniform, apparently shamed a few local police to help him rescue his daughter.

“I’m looking for my daughter, but I also know what wing she’s in,” was the statement he gave to the Times. (“so I start clearing all the classes in her wing.”.)

Ultimately he convinced two officers to provide cover while Albarado and two additional officers rescued Albarado’s daughter.

Due to his status as a federal officer, he simply ignored the local police barricade and got his daughter out of her classroom. After he rescued his family member, he proceeded to help evacuate other school kids during the Robb Elementary School shooting.

Police Can’t Get Story Straight?

Law enforcement officials have given vague and differing answers about the facts and circumstances once the gunman showed up at Robb Elementary School on that fateful day. So far, only the local democrat politicians are blaming the lack of gun laws.

Uvalde DPS Director Steve McCraw said that a school district police officer “engaged” with the armed high school student before entering the Texas Elementary School in Uvalde. Either way, the deranged young man could sneak into the school through an unlocked security door, barricade himself inside, and slaughter innocents.

Uvalde school district police claimed they had been hosting “active shooter training” to “train every Uvalde area law enforcement officer so that we can prepare as best as possible for any situation that may arise.”

Many parents and self-defense rights advocates have been highly critical of public safety, or lack thereof, to stop this mass shooting. Everyone, including many local law enforcement authorities, agrees a swift response could have prevented the shooter, not more gun regulations. And that this was a horrific response.

As a Marine, I am trained to run to the sound of the guns and act quickly to save my Marines and friendlies. From a moral standpoint, once there was an exchange of gunfire, OFFICERS made the “wrong decision” by not pursuing and pinning down the active shooter at Robb Elementary School.

Police NEVER Had a Duty to Protect You or Your Kids!

A former Austin and Houston Police Chief, Art Acevedo, stated: “We don’t have all of the particulars right now, but when gunfire is ringing out with, police are trained, expected, and required to engage, engage, engage.” But this is a moral and ethical obligation, not a legal one.

His bravado aside, words like “expected” and “required,” etc., are nowhere to be found in the Constitution or under English or American Common law. There is no duty, PERIOD!

Acting or not acting is a matter of public policy, and generally, his statements do not establish a duty for officers under civil or criminal statutes.

Here, the police officers at Robb Elementary School apparently acted against the active shooter, so an argument could be made that a duty was assumed and thus existed, giving rise to a possible civil lawsuit against the local police when they withdrew.

• The Law of Affirmative Duty or Assumption of Duty?

The rule is that unless the school police officer had actively been defending the hostages during a school shooting, no affirmative duty existed to protect the deceased shooting victims.

Had the Border Patrol Tactical Team acted improperly and things went wrong (LEO mistakenly executed a hostage, etc.), this federal agency could have been sued in limited situations. But there are other possible ways the parents could sue the Uvalde Police Department, discussed below.

First, it’s ridiculous to call the Castle Rock v. Gonzales 7-2 ruling “Scalia’s 2005 Supreme Court decision.” The Castle Rock case merely re-stated common law and the role of municipal corporations and public safety, etc. In a recent Salon article, Amanda Marcotte discussed an interview of a subway stabbing victim who sued police for failing to help him as he was being stabbed back in 2011.

Ms. Marcotte discusses the stabbing victim’s interview by Cracked.com. He was attacked in front of two cops by a wanted serial killer who had recently killed four others.

In this case, the wanted man drew his knife after boarding the train. He then randomly started stabbing Lozito. Lozito defended himself as two NYPD Subway officers watched, taking no action to assist.

Ultimately, the severely injured Lozito was able to disarm the perp, at which time the two officers effectuated an arrest. Lozito filed a civil rights lawsuit claiming the police were required to act, and he lost. The court found  no duty to act was assumed, so no “special duty” existed.

In the Uvalde shooting, it appears the shooter meandered about the school outside for around 12 minutes before entering the unlocked door leading to the classrooms. He had been carrying two rifles and over 1,600 rounds of ammunition. At some point, there was contact, and some officers were injured.

This is when the shooter sneaked inside and started killing children. The police knew kids were being shot because kids and teachers were calling 9-1-1 and texting their parents.

This fits squarely with the Warren case and Castle Rock that unless the police had assumed a duty, no special duty existed to get in between the shooter and the kids.

Fact Check: NO. Modern Police Did Not Evolve From “Slave Catchers.”

The online magazine prospect.org declares that: “… The first modern-day police were slave catchers …” It then makes the standard media comparisons between police and racist slave catchers, insinuating that police are basically like the KKK with incidental public safety benefits, etc. Ramenda Cyrus relies upon an article from another opinion piece with ZERO points and authorities or evidence that municipal police were created because of or arose from racism.

Cyrus appears to believe the NAACP argument that the Slave Patrols of the 1700s are why we have municipal police.

The argument goes that America started creating municipal police in the “1900s” to enforce Jim Crow laws.

Note that Jim Crow laws were not created until 1868, 24 years after our first municipal police forces in 1838.

However, the research about municipal police has been out there for years. I also discussed the origins of municipal police here. Unlike the Sheriff, municipal cops and chiefs are mostly appointed by city corporations, not the voters. Local County Sheriffs could not conduct local policing with the rapid economic growth of the industrial era cities, so we copied the British model to hire local constables.

“Modern policing emerged in the U.S. during the country’s period of growth, beginning in the mid-nineteenth century.” “In the U.S., our first tax-funded municipal corporations organized professional full-time police services in 1838 Boston. Soon after, New York started their civilian police force in 1844. A bit later, Philadelphia set up its police force in 1854.” (Source Dr. Gary Potter – Eastern Kentucky University.).

There is no evidence presented by journalists Sam Mitrani at inthesetimes.com or by Ramenda Cyrus that the purpose of modern municipal police rose from southern slave catchers of the 1700s, etc. So rather than play the race card, let’s explore this parental rights case from a historical and legal perspective with actual legal citations and arguments by an actual lawyer.

Robb Elementary School Parents Were Detained by Police Officers?

“My brother said, ‘let me go in there … my baby is there. I’m not going anywhere until I see my baby.”

Let’s start. Morally, you’d think an ordinary police force would have chased down the shooter using fire and maneuver tactics. Alas, these were not Texas Rangers. We see a Texas resident with a badge and a borrowed shotgun who was able to get his daughter out of harm’s way. We must assume his status as a federal officer made it possible to detour a State of Texas city police barricade.

Indeed many parents who were not police were trying to go in and save their kids, with at least one being pepper sprayed by police, another handcuffed, and others physically prevented. Parents were literally begging LEO to take action. Only the off-duty Border Patrol agent could get through the police barricade. I would have loved to hear his conversation with the local cops!

Jose Cazares lost his niece Jackie in the shooting. He wants to know why. “It took them 45 minutes to do what? Nothing.” His brother, Javier Cazares, Jackie’s birth father, arrived at the school as the shooting was underway, begging the police to fight for his daughter. “My brother (Javier Cazares) said, ‘let me go in there … my baby is there. I’m not going anywhere until I see my baby.” He raised the rallying call that parents should just charge into the school to other guardians. “Let’s just rush in because the cops aren’t doing anything like they are supposed to,” as gunshots rang out and police wanted to negotiate. Local resident and witness Juan Carranza corroborates that police ignored the cries of parents to just “go in there!”

DPS Says Preventing a Rescue By Parents Made It Safer

State Rep. Vikki Goodwin, D-Austin, confirmed that DPS troopers “restrained two parents attempting to reach their trapped children.” Goodwin said she asked them after seeing a video of the scuffle circulating over social media. She was told a police commander said the arrests were necessary to keep “the public as safe as possible.”

New details are emerging: the cops wanted to wait outside the school for more high-tech equipment. They also wanted a tactical response team of better-trained law enforcement officers like precision riflemen from SWAT.

In effect, some parents argue the police set up a killing zone for the shooter, leaving each classroom open to attack, simultaneously preventing brave parents from rescuing their kids from their classroom locations. As a result, 19 children and two adults were killed.

Parents Say Government is To Blame for Varying Reasons

Many parents leaning right are not blaming guns; instead, they are blaming the cops and gun-free zones. Andrew Pollack — the father of decedent Meadow Pollack, murdered in the Parkland, Florida, high school shooting of 2018 proclaimed he was “so angry” over the Uvalde incident because it was preventable.

As President Joe Biden and the left used the tragedy that resulted in the deaths of 21 people to call for more gun-control laws, Pollack says: “We shouldn’t be focusing on gun control now. Parents should be focused on what they can do. They could learn and educate themselves.” (Source Fox News.) Texas citizens without a badge are able to carry firearms, but not near schools. Why were several parents prevented from rescuing those children unless they had a badge, they ask?

Pollack told news reporter Laura Ingraham, “I’m so angry that I’m practically shaking right now at what happened, at what these parents have to deal with,” “Even a single point of entry would have prevented it. … This didn’t have to happen today.” Pollack asserts, “It’s the parents. It’s your responsibility where you send your children to school.” He thinks parents should recon their kids’ schools and take precautions to assure the school and police take proper safety measures.

Pollack says: “We have $40 billion to send over to Ukraine to protect their borders, but we can’t protect our children in our country. What are our children worth?… How far could that have gone? How many policemen could we have paid with $40 billion to be at schools?”

Using Unspent COVID $$ For Increased Campus Security

We could steer a few billion earmarked for the now passed COVID-19. ($190 billion was allocated for “Covid preparedness,” etc. Those unspent billions would be better spent on school safety measures to thwart armed assailants, right?

FBI Findings?

The FBI statistics say far more people are killed by knives each year than all rifles combined. They also confirm no correlation exists between increasing gun ownership United States murder rate as far back as the 1990s. Susan Collins of Maine and Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania. are pushing for a so-called “red flag law” requiring an FBI background check on all gun sales. Experts agree none of these proposed regulations would have stopped the Uvalde shootings.

Other Arguments

Left-leaning parents say that government is to blame for not banning certain types of guns or banning them completely. Presently, under Heller v. District of Columbia, states are required to honor a legal adult’s right to keep and bear military-style small arms to defend home and country.

Pundits on the right say that Democrats have not called for a constitutional convention to abolish the Second Amendment and instead have attempted to legislate gun rights away. They say that Democrat-appointed judges are rubber-stamping unlawful legislation. According to them, this has been done with great success in the Democratic Super-majority state of California.

President Trump argued yesterday at the NRA Convention near the shooting incident location that “gun-free zones” are an invitation to criminals. In a nutshell, he believes many gun safety laws are knee-jerk jerk and emotion-based, doing nothing to stop evil behavior.

Trump has stated that law enforcement isn’t supposed to wait and set up a perimeter since Colorado’s Columbine High School mass shooting in 1999 (two students who later committed suicide had fatally assassinated 12 classmates and a teacher, injuring 21 others) when there is an active shooter situation. Texas senator Senator Ted Cruz agrees.

Either way, many democrats like Beto O’Rourke have renewed their old arguments, and many hope that privately owned guns will finally be confiscated.

They claim that banning private people from owning guns will stop school shootings. Their argument is a poor police response is irrelevant. Confiscation is their solution to end a future Texas elementary school shooting and others.

Below, I will discuss more about the Uvalde shooting police response and the active shooting suspect’s publicly known, depraved mental state. Next, I will discuss the many ways parents may be able to sue and not be able to sue the Uvalde Police officers, or possibly the Texas Department of Public Safety and others.

YES! There IS Evidence Letting Parents Loose Would Have Rescued Kids!

Common argument courts make when it comes to having more than ten rounds in a firearm, or even when it comes to voter I.D., is “there is no evidence” that having more than ten rounds in a gun will save the defender or prevent more carnage. Or they’ll proclaim there is no evidence of “widespread voter fraud,” necessitating proof you have the right to cast a vote. Because of this, most reporters and journalists use this as a basis to falsely assert that courts have made a factual finding there is no evidence. FALSE!

All this means is that no evidence was presented properly before the court. The court of public opinion looks at things differently. Here, the frustration and ruckus it’s on tape. The local funeral home can verify the body count.

Parent Angeli Rose Gomez

As discussed above, Angeli Rose Gomez, the mother of two kids at Robb Elementary, exclaimed to The Wall Street Journal that cops were “just standing outside the fence” and “They weren’t going in there or running anywhere” as everything occurred and just waited. Gomez told the Wall Street Journal she saw cops tackle a dad, violently throwing him to the ground below. She is a witness to another parent being “pepper-sprayed” during the school shooting in Uvalde.

Gomez, too was vigorously demanding the police effect a rescue. “After a few minutes, she said she was” threatened by U.S. Marshals, who ultimately pulled out their silver bracelets and put her in handcuffs. The deputies told her she was being arrested for “actively intervening in an active investigation.” Gomez successfully convinced at least one Uvalde police officer she knew to have the marshals remove her handcuffs and let her leave the area.

Once she was freed, she beat a path between herself and the crowd, hopped a fence surrounding the campus, bolted into the school, and rescued her children. I would love to hear from her!

Parent Jacob Albarado

Off-duty Border Patrol agent Jacob Albarado was outside his jurisdiction. As I understand, he had no right to lead a local tactical team unless he cut a deal. (More information needed.) Many parents and gun rights activists argue his primary goal was to rescue his child, period!

My take is that I would have acted the same way and would have gotten permission from the local unit to make an assist. Whether it was a fair local police response to wait until a federal agent with a student at the school was proper can be argued by others.

When Can Parents Sue Police Officers For Failing To Protect Kids?

Answer. When Police Assume a Duty By Taking Action.

Police are always liable for things they do that are unlawful. Raping a child is obviously wrong. Exceeding the use of reasonable force is also a reason for a civil rights lawsuit. But here, it’s more nuanced. Many at the National Rifle Association (NRA) convention are questioning why in most cases, police fail to stop shootings and killings, despite a suspect’s overwhelming history of violence and crimes.

They argue that when people are on notice of the dangers of a person, they should act. Here, these pundits argue the case is no different. Last Thursday, at a press conference, DPS officials and others started to release more information.

About the Shooter

More details about the shooter are shining through the media narrative from Texas Governor Greg Abbott and others.

The gunman:

• Apparently dropped out of high school (Source Governor Greg Abbott)
• Prior to the attack, he shot his grandmother, Celia Martinez Gonzales. (The 66-year-old remains in stable condition at a San Antonio hospital.)
• Had no known criminal history (Source Governor Greg Abbott.)

The shooter’s ex-convict, absentee father, Salvador Ramos, stated:

• Due to the Coronavirus, he moved away from the family home and did not wish to expose the shooter’s [grandmother?] to the virus (Source needed.)
• Because of the COVID excuse, his son stopped talking to him
• “I don’t want them calling him a monster … they don’t know nothing, man” (The Daily Beast.)
• His son had bought a pair of boxing gloves.
• His son told him, “… one day somebody’s going to kick your ass.” (I started seeing different changes in him like that.”)
• “My mom tells me he probably would have shot me too because he would always say I didn’t love him.” (Source, The Daily Beast.)
• His son’s aggression is the birth mother’s fault for failing to or being unable to buy decent school supplies and clothing.

What Did Other People Say About the Shooter?

Others responding to questions were more familiar with the shooter, including former classmates.

Here is what we know so far about the gunman:

• CNN reported that he sent messages to a 15-year-old girl online, boasting [I] “just shot my grandma in her head” and was headed to “shoot up” an elementary school.
• He may have been bullied in middle school over his lisp and speech impediment.
• Former co-workers said he had been aggressive.
• One former co-worker stated he liked to harass women in the workplace.
• Classmates noticed his social life was on a downward spiral, and he was not responding to social norms.
• “He would try to pick on people but fail, aggravating him.” He was a bully himself.
• “Was not a good person” (Source WFAA-TV in Dallas.)
• “He always seemed to take his anger out on the most innocent person in the room.” (KTBC-TV in Austin.)
• According to a neighbor, fights and arguing between him and his mom resulted in multiple police contacts.
• His internet message history demonstrated a tendency to “boast about mass bloodshed and guns.” “He posted videos on his Instagram where the cops were there, and he’d call his mom a b**** and say she wanted to kick him out.”. “He’d be screaming and talking to his mom aggressively.” (Source.)
• He would cut his face for fun. (Source, The New York Times.)
• Engaged in animal abuse (a known pattern for mass killers.)
• He intimidated random strangers with his B.B. gun.

His home life was dysfunctional, and it’s clear the gunman had problems with his father and no one to discipline and lead him. He was clearly in need of mental health services that might have prevented the shooting.

Some Basic Duties of Police Officers

As a magistrate, officers should act to do justice and not simply enforce a department policy like mindless drones. When I worked at the prosecutor’s office, I learned that blind obedience to a penal code is not doing justice. If I was an officer at that scene, I’d of deputized any qualified parents with a gun and prior military service who wanted a chance to save their kids with me in the lead.

Assuming law enforcement officials had no prior notice of the above nefarious actions of the shooter, the police are still facing increasing questions as to whether peace officers could have swiftly ended the scuffle before it became a bloodbath.

FBI Claims Not on “Radar”

In a news conference, Rep. Joaquin Castro (Democrat) told reporters he met with the FBI last week and was told the shooter: “was not on the FBI’s radar” prior to the shooting. He went on to say the FBI is expected to “use their maximum authority to investigate and provide a full report on the timeline, the law enforcement response, and how 21 Texans were killed.” Even if the FBI knew, or the police knew of an impending attack, again, the government would be immune from being sued. Sure, heads may roll, and a few cops might be fired. But that’s it.

However, According to Twitter, Ramos’ Online Gamer Friend Says She Reported Gunman’s Intentions to FBI Hours Before School Shooting!

• Gamer said they recorded another player threatening to ‘shoot up a school’ online after losing at a video game only days before Salvador Ramos killed 21 people

• The user said she reported the outburst to the FBI before the school massacre

• A friend of Ramos’ said he would ‘talk about school shootings all the time’ while playing Call of Duty but ‘everyone on the game always thought he was joking’

• Are you the female gamer who reported the shooter? Email us at hannah.parry@mailonline.com

(Source1, Source 2, Daily Mail.)

You can be charged with a felony for lying to the FBI, but the FBI and all police are allowed to lie to you. (Source.). Let that sink in.

Here, Uvalde police got the first 9-1-1 call on Tuesday at approximately 11:20 a.m. after the gunman’s grandmother reported her grandson shot her in the face at her house which is about two minutes from Robb Elementary School.

Some Additional Facts About the Shooting Timeline

The shooter, not a licensed driver, took off in his wounded grandmother’s pickup truck, crashing into a ditch near the elementary school at around 11:28 a.m. Officer McCraw stated that Ramos shot at two bystanders near the road and then onto the school campus. It was there from outside the premises he began firing 5.56 NATO ball rounds at the building’s exterior from outside before entering the building at 11:33 a.m. through a back door that a careless teacher had left propped open.

Once inside, the gunman gained entry through a pair of connected classrooms (rooms 111 and 112). It was there he killed 19 children and their two teachers. He also wounded 17 more people, firing around 100 rounds, according to McCraw. According to McCraw, around 186 rounds were fired from when he crashed the truck to when he was taken out.

McCraw stated the officers fell back after two had been shot and wounded by Mr. Ramos, calling for more help as the gunman fired. It was then that police attempted negotiation tactics with the shooter. Ramos “did not respond.”

“They don’t make entry initially because of their receiving gunfire.” “But we have officers calling for additional resources, everybody that’s in the area, tactical teams: We need equipment, we need specialty equipment, we need body armor, we need precision riflemen, negotiators.” (Source, Victor Escalon, South Texas regional director of DPS.)

Barricaded Suspect Scene Called In?

The site commander declared a “barricaded suspect” situation and established a police barricade around the school perimeter as he believed children no longer faced any risk. “There were plenty of officers [at the scene] to do what needed to be done,” according to McCraw.

For an hour or so it took for the police, who were led by an armed parent, to locate and kill the shooter, multiple 9-1-1 calls and texts came from the locked-down classrooms. During the emotionally shattering press conference, McGraw appeared visibly devastated and “choked up” towards the end, proclaiming, “We’re not here to defend what happened.”

There is no evidence that police overfunding or underfunding had anything to do with this response. The defund police movement has made police trigger shy to act, especially when there is no duty to act.

Police are public servants who take an oath and sign and file a fidelity bond. Citizens have always been responsible for their own safety and that of their children. Guns have played a large role in keeping families safe. The press and popular media have talked out of both sides of their mouth for years, blurring who is responsible for what. Although police are not untouchable superheroes, they can investigate and punish crime.

Even if the Texas Legislature or Congress tries and pass a law that pegs liability on police who fail to act in a mass shooting situation, no wrongful-death statutes like this would likely pass judicial review. Under common law, it has always been up to parents to address child safety, not friends, police, or somebody else.

More background checks would not have stopped this determined killer either, according to experts.

But as we encountered above, the only parent who was allowed to effectuate a rescue was an off-duty Border Patrol officer married to a teacher at the school outside of his known agency jurisdiction.

Many experts agree this was a case of professional courtesy since when officers arrived earlier, they did nothing. The colonists were tired of being treated like servants by their public servants. “If he can go and get his kid, why can’t I get mine? Because you have a badge and I don’t? Really?” one of the local residents said.

Can Parents Sue Uvalde Police For Refusing To Let Parents Save Their Kids?

Yes. But it’s nuanced whether parents can win, and it depends on what happened and why. Here, the police will argue they had a duty to prevent civilians from entering an active crime scene. This was the reason given by cops for arresting and injuring worried, impatient parents as shots rang out.

In the end, it depends on the judge and jury. Assuming the parents are charged with crimes by a stupid enough prosecutor for trying to rescue their kids, these parents can defend themselves criminally and sue civilly.

Abuse By Police?

You have an absolute right to defend yourself if under attack or falsely imprisoned, even when a police officer is the one assaulting you. This is the defense a defendant gives to criminal charges of resisting arrest. The school district’s police department may use reasonable force to effectuate an arrest.

We have all seen the horrific videos of police brutality and excessive force and seen how rarely the officers involved have faced criminal penalties after injuring or even killing civilians. Almost always, the officer gets acquitted.

In any event, the police officers will argue and usually win based on qualified immunity to block and arrest parents. Again, police leadership and love of American values are the issues here. The citizens of Uvalde voted for the municipal city government they wanted.

But, the silver lining is that if the jury finds these parents were unjustly arrested, these Uvalde, Texas parents will have grounds for filing a Title 42, Section 1983 Civil Rights Action against the police department for various causes of action, including assault and battery. But that victory will do little to bring back dead students after police waited more than an hour since the shooter entered the school campus.

Other Potential Defendants:

If the elder Ramos had known his son as well as his classmates, co-workers, and internet companions did, would he have intervened to stop the school shooting?

The elder Ramos sports a substantial criminal record. It includes a conviction for assault and causing bodily injury to a family member. Ramos admitted he was also estranged from his daughter. She was also frustrated with him for not spending more time with family members. The father, as the legal guardian may be a defendant for negligence, except that Ramos junior was a legal adult.

Sue the School For Negligent Security?

The open back door?

On Thursday, May 26, 2022, Steven McCraw of the Texas Department of Public Safety seemed to approve of Robb Elementary school’s initial police officer response that Tuesday. But he revealed Friday that the shooter entered the building through a back door that a teacher had propped open minutes before.

Unlocked, propped-open doors, evidence of past shootings, and even the police had been preparing for a mass shooting event may open the school up for a wrongful death lawsuit. Assuming they had knowledge of dangers, they would have a duty under common law to take reasonable public safety precautions.

Whether or not there was prior violence at the school requiring more security is a question for a jury. Since it would be a government claim, Texas law would apply as far as filing deadlines and damages caps, if any. We learned from the disjointed responses for law enforcement on May 26, 2022, that law enforcement officials and teachers also got it wrong.

Daniel Defense For Manufacturing the AR15 Clone?

Steve Reed, a company spokesman for Daniel Defense, stated: “It is our understanding that Daniel Defense manufactured the firearm used in the attack.” Among its customers are law enforcement and firearms enthusiasts.

Unless a gun manufacturer purposely tries to lie about a gun or promote it as an instrument to do harm (wrongful marketing), a firearm is considered inherently dangerous, shielding the manufacturer from liability. Caveat emptor or “buyer beware,” you are a gun owner, and guns can be dangerous.

WHAT CAN PARENTS DO TO SAVE THEIR SCHOOL KIDS?

Most school-safety advocates call for controlled access, where someone can be buzzed in during school hours. I am sure Javier Cazares has some things to contribute to the list.

Here are some other safety tips posited by self-defense experts:

• Teach kids how to escape danger zones
• Teach students basic civics and respect for each other (be colorblind and treat everyone with the same dignity.).

Push harder to fund better school safety in America, including:

• Posting armed guards
• Single points of school entry locations
• Better teacher training about mass shootings
• Arming willing and trained teachers with experience
• Teach gun safety and responsibility to children using the CMP, or Civilian Marksmanship Program

Do you have ideas for safety measures to protect against mass shooting events or gun violence at schools? Since the shooter was shown on video wearing a black tactical vest and wielding two AR15 semi-automatic rifles, he would not have been granted access and would have been choked off by the school resource officer at the single point of entry.

Condolences

My condolences go out to the two adult victims, Eva Mireles and Irma Garcia, two of the most appreciated members of Uvalde, its parents, and Robb Elementary School students. This is a place where everybody knows everybody, and it’s absurd to claim that either Eva Mireles or Irma Garcia had been underappreciated during their blessed lives as teachers at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas. It appears they tried to save their Robb Elementary School students during the massacre and will always be remembered.

The Garcia family, I want to provide your GoFundMe information to my viewers. The 30-year husband and high school sweetheart of deceased Robb Elementary School fourth grade teacher, Irma Garcia, died of a heart attack on Thursday.

Debra Austin, a cousin of Irma, said:

“I truly believe Joe died of a broken heart and losing the love of his life … was too much to bear.”

Anyone with information on how I can find a link to the Garcia family’s GoFundMe page, please help.

To the parents who tried to rescue their kids and wanted to be heard as they confronted seeming lackadaisical police, I hear your pain. And to those Uvalde parents who would have attempted to run the barricade if they could have, my heart goes out to you, and I am here to provide moral support as a fellow citizen.

Accolades

I want to praise Javier Cazares for saying what needs to be said about bad policing. In recent years our volunteer police forces have been kicked around and dragged through the garbage by the for-profit media for far too long. Some responded properly here, and others were horrible.

The Washington Post reported that $3.2 billion had been paid out to settle police misconduct and law enforcement official negligence claims in the last decades. Without admitting liability, 25 of the nation’s largest police and Sheriff’s departments simply settled cases and backed off enforcing or intervening against certain criminal activities. It takes a brave officer to take action when their boss is taking the path of least resistance, to make it home safe and get a tax-funded pension.

But most municipal cops serve an essential law enforcement function, and they operate under a military-like chain of command.

However, cops mustn’t lose sight of the fact you will unleash the storm of a mother and anybody else nearby with a soul when students are in harm’s way. I won’t profess to know everything about why they handcuffed a pissed-off mother.

I will explain one thing, I identify with the mother wanting to prevent the death of her child and the other students. I toe the line with her and break ranks with the marshals on this one—sorry, gents.

To the cops who got Ms. Gomez released from the federal marshals, Semper Fidelis. What those feds did was the worse thing possible. They should have gone in PERIOD! Put that in your school shooting report!

If you ever need anything, my firm and my Marine brothers are here to help. To the off-duty border patrol agent, great work. I’d of done exactly the same thing if faced with a school shooting scenario. There are rules of man and rules from the universe to prevent more victims from being killed. You chose well and did the Lord’s work, preventing more third and fourth-grade students and teachers from dead in this most recent mass shooting.

I also want to thank 24-year-old witness Juan Carranza for verifying this story as we help each other through this heartwrenching period. Juan Carranza is an unbiased witness to parents and biased to police. He’ll likely be called to trial if lawsuits are filed over negligent law enforcement agencies due to this mass shooting at the elementary school in Uvalde, Texas.

We did reach out to Chief Daniel Rodrigues of the Uvalde Police Department as well as the person in charge of the school district police, Chief Pete Arredondo, but neither has responded to our requests for comment about this school shooting. Are you a school security officer? We would love to hear your opinions about the shooting in Uvalde Texas, immediately. Call us at (833) LETS-SUE.

Learn More About Why Students Are Not Entitled to Police Protection

If you or someone you love suffered a wrongful death in a recent mass shooting like that outside Robb Elementary School school in Uvalde, Texas, we empathize with you. We are licensed to practice civil rights law and personal injury litigation in California courts. We can be admitted pro hac vice in other courts like Texas on an ad hoc basis.

Schedule a free consultation to see if we can help in this nation’s second-most-lethal shooting in a K-12 school since the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting massacre in Newtown, Connecticut. You can also use our hassle-free contact us for verification purposes only and prompt return call, 24/7, to tell us your thoughts about the deadliest school shooting in recent years.

Other sources:

• Associated Press
• Everytown for Gun Safety
• Special Thanks to The New York Times for their coverage of the Robb Elementary School massacre