UVALDE, Texas — Another day of grieving outside Robb Elementary School in Uvalde brought mounting frustration from mourners, who are questioning the police response to the school massacre.
“They should have done something and went in right away,” Staci Mendez said.
“Aren’t they trained to do that? Aren’t they trained for this type of situation?” Norma Vasquez said.
The officers were trained. Records with the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement show Uvalde CISD Chief Peter Arredondo took three active shooter training courses over the past three years.
Instructor Richard Bryan taught the school resource officers at the district in August 2020. He said he teaches a mindset for officers to run towards the sound of gunfire.
“If you hear shooting taking place in there, that means lives are being lost,” Bryan said. “We got to get in there and stop it as soon as possible.”
He said that means even if police are outgunned.
“If you’re in there, you got to bring the fight to them,” Bryan said.
But Arredondo made the call to pull back and wait for backup after responding officers initially took on gunfire, according to Texas Department of Public Safety Col. Steven McCraw. The head of the DPS previously said Arredondo believed the shooter had barricaded himself and the children were not under an active threat.
Bryan confirmed that potential scenario is part of the training.
“So, the way it's taught is it is possible that what started off as an active shooter event might turn into a barricaded subject,” Bryan said. “If it is a barricaded subject situation, then we want to try to negotiate with the person rather than push it to an issue where if we're trying to force our way in, they may start shooting again."
Despite that training protocol, McCraw said it was the wrong decision to wait when children inside the school continued to call 911 for help. Arredondo has yet to address the issue. He has been dodging reporters daily saying that he is waiting until all of the funerals have taken place.
At Robb Elementary, mourners said what happened was clear.
“I just think that all the kids were failed ... they failed all the kids,” Vasquez said.