Ruben Navarrette Jr.: Uvalde families won’t forget mass shooting – especially now that law enforcement failures are back in the spotlight

When does a parent get over the death of a child? Never.

The pain can be excruciating when those who could have prevented your child’s death have not been held accountable. It is as if someone is telling you that your child’s life meant nothing, when it meant the world to you.

It’s been 20 months since Salvador Ramos walked into Robb Elementary School in the 15,000-person town of Uvalde, Texas, on May 24, 2022, and started shooting.

The 18-year-old, who once attended that same school, had a history of psychological and emotional problems. And this being the Lone Star State, Ramos easily got his hands on an AR-15-style assault rifle.

The gunman killed 19 children – most of them 10 or 11 years old. The deceased also included fourth-grade teachers Irma Garcia and Eva Mireles, who appear to have died heroically protecting students. The assailant was killed at the scene by a tactical unit of the U.S. Border Patrol.

Almost all the victims of the massacre were Latino. As a Mexican American, I’m afraid this is one reason much of the country appears to have moved on from this story.

Less than two months after the tragedy, I wrote in a column: “Sooner or later, the whole truth will come out. And hopefully, those who betrayed their oath – and then tried to cover it up – will be judged and held accountable.”

Now some of the truth has come out, in a 575-page report from the Justice Department. DOJ investigators spent several weeks in Uvalde, conducted more than 260 interviews and sifted through more than 14,000 pieces of evidence.

In all, about 375 law enforcement officers – from several agencies – descended on the school.

The first handful of officers entered the building within five minutes of the first shots, but they retreated when they were met by gunfire. The larger contingent of police officers waited around 77 minutes before the Border Patrol agents killed Ramos.

The report heaps much of the blame on Pete Arredondo, the hapless chief of the school district police force who was nominally in charge of the law enforcement response.

Arredondo was incompetent. The school board members in Uvalde eventually fired him.

According to the DOJ report, the school chief at one point “tossed his radios” to keep his hands free and then – relying on a cellphone with spotty reception – couldn’t receive critical information such as the location of students.

But let’s save some blame for law enforcement leaders who weren’t on-site but had a duty to command subordinates who were.

Consider the two-step by Texas Department of Public Safety Director Steve McCraw, who initially praised the response of law enforcement but later threw Arredondo under the bus. McCraw appears to have provided inaccurate information to the public, according to the DOJ report, and possibly also to Gov. Greg Abbott, who told reporters he was “livid” at being misled. McCraw is also not big on transparency; Texas media companies have had to go to court because they’ve been denied access to DPS records from the day of the massacre.

Despite calls for his ouster, and his own assessment that he needs “to go” if DPS failed Uvalde, McCraw is still at his post. In fact, he recently got a $45,437 raise – roughly 15% of his annual salary. He now earns $345,250.

That is astounding to Texas Sen. Roland Gutierrez, who doesn’t think the blame stops with local officials and believes McCraw should be fired.

According to the Associated Press, out of the hundreds of officers at Robb Elementary School that day, only five have been fired or resigned.

At the Texas Department of Public Safety, McCraw claims seven of his officers are under investigation over Uvalde.

Seriously? It’s been 20 months. These folks investigate people for a living. What’s the holdup?

The victims’ families are calling for the police involved to be criminally prosecuted for misconduct or negligence.

The Justice Department was careful not to wade in on whether charges should be filed, saying that’s up to Uvalde County District Attorney Christina Mitchell, who critics say is dragging her feet. A grand jury was empaneled to decide if charges are warranted, but we may not have an answer for six months.

It’s unclear whether law enforcement officers can be held criminally liable for failing to protect the public.

But, in the court of public opinion, the verdict is already in. At the very least, a lot of Texas police officers must turn in their badges. They may be better suited for another line of work – one with lower stakes where, if they don’t do their job, no one dies.

Navarrette’s email address is crimscribe@icloud.com. His podcast, “Ruben in the Center,” is available through every podcast app.