After it came to light that police officials hesitated in engaging with the Texas school gunman because 'they could've been shot', many Texas residents are outraged.
The shooter, 18-year-old Salvador Ramos, shot and killed 19 students and two teachers at Robb Elementary School in Ulvade on Tuesday, 24 May.
Following a press conference, it surfaced that Ramos was believed to have been inside the elementary school for ‘approximately an hour' before responding officers finally entered the premises and shot and killed him at the scene, Victor Escalon, the south Texas regional director of the state’s department of public safety, said.
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He also noted that nobody 'confronted' the gunman before this time period.
A Texas Department of Public Safety official commented on the delayed response time in entering the building, highlighting that the reason for their hesitation was that 'they could've been shot'.
Residents of the local area have since expressed their disappointment and anger at police officials' delayed response to the horrific elementary school shooting that left more than 20 people dead.
The Wall Street Journal has since reported on the police's treatment of the parents who were outside while students were stuck inside the school building during the shooting.
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In an interview with Angeli Rose Gomez, a parent of children from the Robb Elementary School, she said: "The police were doing nothing.
"They were just standing outside the fence. They weren't going in there or running anywhere."
The WSJ reported that Gomez was subsequently handcuffed on the grounds of intervening in an active investigation.
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The mother also told the outlet that she witnessed similar treatment to the other parents at the scene, seeing some being tackled to the ground and pepper-sprayed.
Gomez said she saw 'police use a Taser on a local father who approached the bus to collect his child'.
The WSJ also reported Gomez alleging she saw a police use a taser on a father who approached a school bus in an effort to get into contact with his child.
It's also reported that, once freed from her handcuffs, Gomez 'jumped the school fence, and ran inside to grab her children' before sprinting out of the school with them.
Many people have since taken to Twitter to share their outrage at the handling of the situation.
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One woman posted: "This mother is my hero. I also would have risked my life, risked jail by jumping that fence & entering the school to save my kid, other kids, ANY children. The police officers should be ashamed for their inaction."
Another wrote: "If you’re a police officer, your JOB is to go in. Your JOB is to rush in. If you can’t do that, find another job."
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Rhiannon Ingle