DOJ Report Condemns Law Enforcement's Response to Uvalde School Shooting

Lack of leadership, misclassification of the situation, and failure to preserve evidence among key failures identified.

According to a 575-page report by the Department of Justice (DOJ), law enforcement's response to the Uvalde school shooting in Texas was severely flawed, leading to unnecessary deaths.
The report found that officers treated the situation as a 'barricaded subject' rather than an 'active shooter', leading to delays in confronting the shooter.
Nearly 400 officers from 24 agencies responded, but lack of leadership caused mass confusion and chaos, with no clear command structure in place.
Officers failed to preserve evidence and the crime scene, with non-investigatory personnel entering the scene and contaminating it.
Following the shooting, local and state officials gave out inaccurate and conflicting information, worsening the suffering of victims' families and eroding public trust.