A Texas police officer had the Uvalde gunman in his sights but never fired a shot, believing that he needed permission to fire, a new study of the mass killings revealed on Wednesday.
The report from Texas State University, looking at law enforcement's response to the deadly Robb Elementary School attack, raised the troubling question whether Salvador Rolando Ramos could have been stopped before he entered campus where he killed 19 children and two teachers.
Texas State University s Advanced Law Enforcement Rapid Response Training ALERRT pointed out a number of errors made before Ramos walked through an open school door.
A Uvalde Police Department officer reported that Ramos had crashed his truck before he could get out and carry a rifle.
The report found that a UPD officer was armed with a rifle and sighted in to shoot the attacker, but he asked his supervisor for permission to shoot. The report continued, because the UPD officer did not hear a response and turned to get confirmation from his supervisor.
Texas law allows officers to shoot a person if there is a reasonable belief that deadly force was immediately necessary to prevent the commission of murder, ALERRT said.
A city police department spokeswoman could not be reached for comment on Wednesday.
This is a developing story.