May 26, 2022

In Light of Conflicting Accounts from Texas Authorities, Congressman Castro Urges FBI to Investigate Uvalde Shooting

SAN ANTONIO – Today, Congressman Joaquin Castro (TX-20) sent a letter to Federal Bureau of Investigation Director Christopher Wray urging the FBI to use its maximum authority to examine the timeline of events around the Uvalde school shooting and the law enforcement response.

The letter is here and below. 

Dear Director Wray, 

Today our nation and the state of Texas mourn the 19 children and two teachers murdered at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas on May 24, 2022. The Uvalde shooting is the deadliest school shooting in Texas and one of the deadliest to take place in the United States.

This incident has devastated Uvalde and the surrounding community, which includes my city of San Antonio. San Antonio hospitals received patients who were critically injured in the shooting and our school counselors, law enforcement officers, health care workers, and other personnel are in Uvalde to help our neighbors respond to this horrifying tragedy. 

The people of Uvalde, of Texas, and of the nation deserve an accurate account of what transpired. However, state officials have provided conflicting accounts that are at odds with those provided by witnesses, including: 

  • Whether the school security officer and the gunman exchanged fire outside the school.
  • How long law enforcement officers were in adjoining classrooms while the gunman barricaded himself in a classroom with students and teachers. 

Moreover, a block of time between 11:30 a.m. and 1 p.m. local time has yet to be fully accounted for. Onlookers allege that parents unsuccessfully urged law enforcement to enter the building during this time and confront the shooter.

I urge the FBI to use its maximum authority to thoroughly examine the timeline of events and the law enforcement response and to produce a full, timely, and transparent report on your findings. Your agency must ensure that the American people have a complete and comprehensive account of how this tragedy occurred.