Calls grow for officials to release surveillance video from Uvalde mass school shooting

Gov. Greg Abbott is among the growing chorus of politicians calling for the public release of surveillance video inside Robb Elementary showing the response to the Uvalde school shooting.

So far, only surveillance images have been publicly released.

Some lawmakers and journalists have seen the full 77 minutes from the moment the shooter entered the school to the moment law enforcement finally breached the classroom and killed him. It reportedly depicts a damning account of police inaction in the face of tragedy.

The head of Texas' State police met again Monday with a committee investigating the Uvalde Elementary School shooting as anger over why officers waited so long to confront the gunman mounts among families of the 21 people killed inside a fourth-grade classroom.

UVALDE, TX - JUNE 25: A couple from the nearby town of Del Rio, TX pays their respects at a memorial for the victims of the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School on June 25, 2022 in Uvalde, Texas. The Uvalde community is marking one month since the

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Nearly seven weeks after the deadliest school shooting in Texas history, hundreds of people, including relatives of some of the 19 children killed, gathered and marched in Uvalde under searing 100-degree heat during the weekend in a renewed push for answers and accountability.

Texas Representative Dustin Burrows (R-Lubbock) leads the House Committee investigating the shooting. The committee has conducted dozens of interviews. 

Final interviews — including one of Uvalde County Sheriff Ruben Nolasco who initially declined to testify — happened in a closed session Monday.

"We have interviewed almost 40 members and have been spending countless hours reviewing other witness statements and other audio files," Burrows said.

The committee has viewed surveillance footage of the gunman’s attack. They want it made public, but Burrows and others signed non-disclosure agreements with Uvalde County DA Christina Busbee. She wants the video to remain off-limits to the general public.

"This video would be of the hallway footage from Robb Elementary School. It would contain no graphic images or depictions of violence. It would literally begin after the shooter enters the room and end before a breach of that room," Burrows explained.

The footage reportedly shows law enforcement just outside the classroom. They’re very armed, but there are no attempts to breach the classroom for an hour.

After Monday’s hearing, Burrows tweeted, "it is my intention to show the hallway video to the people of Uvalde, regardless of any agreement. I will not release it to the public until the people of Uvalde have seen it for themselves."

The governor agrees.

"Let me be clear and let me be adamant: the full truth about what happened in Uvalde must be disclosed to the public, especially to the people of Uvalde, and must be done quickly."

While in Dallas for a convention on Monday, Gov. Abbott called for the footage to be released with an understanding that images of victims aren’t shown.

Richardson ISD TA raising funds for Robb Elementary teachers for school supplies

"I’m on the side of full disclosure of all the information," Abbott said.

The Uvalde County DA has not responded to FOX 4’s multiple requests for comment since the school shooting.

"While we could continue on and on and on reviewing things, we will continue to look today to see if we have enough information to get at least a preliminary report out there sooner than later so that people start getting some information and seeing what it is that we are discovering," Burrows said.

The committee would like to release the surveillance video when it releases its report, but it’s unclear how soon it will be released.

Witnesses Monday included Uvalde County Sheriff Ruben Nolasco and Steve McCraw, director of the Texas Department of Public Safety, who has previously met with the committee and has publicly called the law enforcement response an "abject failure."

Some Uvalde residents on Monday joined President Joe Biden on the White House lawn as he showcased a new law meant to reduce gun violence. It is the most impactful firearms-violence measure Congress has approved since the 1994 enactment of a since-expired ban on semi-automatic guns that were defined as "assault weapons." Yet gun control advocates — and even White House officials — say it’s premature to declare victory.

"I'm using this pain to speak to you today as a Uvaldian," said Dr. Roy Guerrero, a pediatrician in Uvalde who treated some of the victims. "And to speak for the parents and victims who seek the truth, transparency, and ultimately, accountability."

The Associated Press contributed to the report.