Biden visits Uvalde after school shooting
Created: 05/30/2022, 04:28
Flowers, balloons and stuffed animals commemorate the victims of the massacre at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas.
© Wong Maye-E/AP/dpa
During his visit to the elementary school where a shooter took 21 lives a few days ago, US President Biden spoke at length with the families of the victims.
Anger at the police is great among them.
Washington/Uvalde – After the horrific massacre at an elementary school in the state of Texas, US President Joe Biden visited the affected community of Uvalde.
Biden and his wife Jill spent several hours with relatives of the victims and survivors of the shooting.
The meeting took place behind closed doors.
The Bidens laid flowers outside the school where an 18-year-old gunman shot dead 19 children and two teachers on Tuesday.
They also met emergency services and attended a service in the community, which is in shock and angry at the dramatic failures of the police operation.
The US Department of Justice now wants to investigate the actions of the police.
Motive not yet known
The attacker locked himself in with students and teachers in two connected classrooms on Tuesday and caused the bloodbath there with an assault rifle.
17 other people were injured.
The perpetrator was shot dead by the police in the end.
So far nothing is known about his motive.
On Friday, the public safety agency in Texas presented new investigation results that caused bewilderment: According to this, 19 police officers were posted in the hallway in front of the classroom at an early stage, in which the gunman had holed up with teachers and students.
For more than 45 minutes, however, the officers made no attempts to enter the room and stop the gunman.
Instead, they waited for reinforcements, although children from inside the room made numerous frantic calls to the police for help.
More than 75 minutes after the shooter opened fire, emergency services entered the classroom and killed the gunman.
The new findings on the process caused an outcry, especially among the families of the victims.
Several relatives accused the police that they could have saved lives if they had not waited so long.
Texas Public Safety Director Steven McCraw himself admitted on Friday that officers made a mistake not to enter the classroom earlier.
"It was the wrong decision.
point,” he said.
"There is no excuse for that."
Police in the spotlight
The US Department of Justice announced on Sunday that it would investigate the police actions.
Uvalde Mayor Don McLaughlin asked for it.
The aim of the investigation is to create an independent report on the actions of the security authorities that day and to draw lessons for other attacks.
The report should be published at the end.
It is therefore not about possible legal consequences for individual officials.
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The President and First Lady met paramedics, psychologists, firefighters and police officers in addition to families of the victims in Uvalde.
So far, Biden has not commented on the findings of the police operation.
The Democrat made no public statement during his visit to Uvalde.
Biden only responded to a call.
When someone in the crowd shouted, "Do something," Biden replied, "We will."
US President Joe Biden and his wife Jill speak with Principal Mandy Gutierrez and Superintendent Hal Harrell of Robb Elementary School during their visit to Texas.
© Evan Vucci/AP/dpa
The Uvalde killing spree has fueled the debate about tightening gun laws in the United States.
For years, many Republicans have opposed stricter regulations, such as a ban on assault rifles.
The US has long struggled with massive levels of gun violence.
In 2020, gun injuries were the number one killer of children and adolescents in the United States, ahead of traffic accidents.
dpa