Former Uvalde mayor's police training bill heads to Gov. Abbott's desk
The Brief
A bill aimed at improving police training after the Uvalde school shooting has passed the Texas Senate.
"The Uvalde Strong Act" would mandate annual active shooter response planning and enhanced school-specific officer training.
The bill seeks to address issues identified in the delayed law enforcement response to the 2022 Robb Elementary attack.
AUSTIN - A bill intended to fix some issues in police training that may have contributed to the 2022 Uvalde school shooting now awaits Gov. Greg Abbott's approval.
HB 33, also called "The Uvalde Strong Act," filed by former Uvalde mayor and freshman Rep. Don McLaughlin Jr. (R-Uvalde), aims to better train officers and enhance agency coordination in hopes of preventing comparable shootings in the future.
McLaughlin, who was mayor of Uvalde at the time of the attack and has been actively seeking change to law enforcement policy since, says the bill would correct problems with training that led to police hesitancy in the shooting.
The bill would require officers and school officials to meet annually for active shooter response plan development. It also increases officer training specifically for school shooter responses at primary and secondary school campuses.
The delayed law enforcement response to the May 24, 2022, shooting has been widely condemned as a massive failure: Nearly 400 officers waited more than 70 minutes before confronting the gunman in a classroom filled with dead and wounded children and teachers in the South Texas city of about 15,000 people, 80 miles west of San Antonio.
What they're saying
In a statement quoted by the Associated Press, McLaughlin said the following:
"The Uvalde Strong Act is aimed at fixing the breakdowns in communication and coordination that were exposed in the Robb Elementary shooting," McLaughlin said. "This is about keeping our schools safer. ... We owe it to the families to take action that really matters."
What's next
The bill passed the Texas Senate on Monday. Abbott's signature is the last hurdle before the proposal becomes law.
Two of the responding officers face multiple criminal charges of abandonment and endangerment. Former Uvalde school Police Chief Pete Arredondo and former school officer Adrian Gonzales have pleaded not guilty. According to the Associated Press, they are due for trial in October.
The Source
Information in this article came from the Associated Press, Texas Legislature Online, and previous Fox 7 reporting.
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