Texas speaker launches investigative committee in Uvalde shooting, issues additional charges to committees

Published 1:00 pm Friday, June 3, 2022

AUSTIN — Texas Speaker of the House Dade Phelan convened an investigative committee to look into the Robb Elementary School shooting in Uvalde where 21 people were killed.

“The fact that we still do not have an accurate picture of what exactly happened in Uvalde is an outrage,” Phelan said in a statement on Friday. “Every day, we receive new information that conflicts with previous reports, making it not only difficult for authorities to figure out next steps, but for grieving families of the victims to receive closure.”

The three-member committee is tasked with examining the circumstances surrounding the shooting, as well as gathering information and evidence to “help inform the House’s response” to the tragedy, Phelan said.

He named Rep. Dustin Burrows, R-Lubbock; Rep. Joe Moody, D-El Paso; and judge and former state attorney general candidate Eva Guzman to the committee. Burrows will chair and Moody will vice-chair the committee, the release said.

“They have the civil and criminal litigation experience needed to get it done. I know each of them to be diligent, thorough and focused professionals whom I trust will do everything in their power to deliver facts and answers at a time when they are needed most,” Phelan said in a Tweet following the announcement.

The Uvalde tragedy, now the second deadliest school shooting in U.S. history, has been compounded by near daily conflicting reports of what happened May 24. Frustration over changing timelines has also led to the launch of an independent review by the U.S. Justice Department. Other state and local leaders have also called on the FBI to conduct an independent investigation as well.

“The goal of the review is to provide an independent account of law enforcement actions and responses that day, and to identify lessons learned and best practices to help first responders prepare for and respond to active-shooter events,” Anthony Coley, a spokesperson for the U.S. Justice Department, has previously stated.

Phelan also issued five joint charges to the Select Committee on Youth Health and Safety and the Homeland Security and Public Safety Committee to address mass violence prevention and community safety. Those changes include studying the impact of Senate Bill 11, which requires public schools to conduct behavioral threat assessments and collect relevant data on its efficacy; examining strategies to prevent acts of mass violence; identifying mental health professional needs; and reviewing current coordination between state and local agencies and law enforcement in the prevention of and response to mass violence.

The announcement comes after Gov. Greg Abbott directed Phelan and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick to launch special committees on this subject. Patrick announced the launch of a special committee in the state senate on Wednesday, but most notably left out state Sen. Roland Gutierrez, a Democrat who represents Uvalde.

Abbott has also directed other state agencies including the Texas Education Agency on Thursday to develop strategies to make schools safer.

Phelan took note of the criticism adding six additional house member to the Select Committee on Youth Health and Safety – five of whom represent cities that have experienced a mass shooting in recent years.

Those are Reps. Greg Bonnen, representing Santa Fe; Mary Gonzalez, representing El Paso; Tracy King, representing Uvalde; John Kuempel, representing Sutherland Springs; and Brooks Landgraf, representing Odessa. Rep. Drew Darby, R-San Angelo, was also appointed to the committee, previously working on the select committee on Mass Violence Prevention and Community Safety.

Phelan has also been vocal in noting shortfalls in the Uvalde investigation and pushing for more information.

On Wednesday, he supported journalists in their request for the public release of all evidence that could provide an accurate account of the day, including 911 calls and videos. Currently, a so-called “dead suspect loophole” could protect law enforcement from releasing these files. It allows police to withhold the release of information in closed criminal cases.

Phelan said in 2019, he and Moody worked on a bill to close the loophole. That bill died in the state senate, but Phelan vowed in a Tweet that he would work to close the loophole in the upcoming session.

“Unfortunately this much-needed, common sense measure joined the ranks of many other crim(inal) justice reform bills by meeting its death in the Texas Senate, where they stripped the language out,” he said. “I think it’s time we pass legislation to end the dead suspect loophole for good in 2023.”