UPDATE: Law enforcement authorities had enough officers on the scene of the Uvalde school massacre to stop the gunman three minutes after he entered the building, the Texas Department of Public Safety Director Steve McCraw testified on Tuesday.
McCraw told the Senate committee that Pete Arredondo, the Uvalde school district police chief, decided to put the lives of officers ahead of the lives of children.
Read the latest here: Takeaways from Texas DPS director’s testimony about the Uvalde shooting, gunman and police response
A special Texas Senate committee will meet on Tuesday morning to hear testimony from law enforcement regarding the Uvalde school shooting.
Tuesday’s hearing starts at 9 a.m. View a livestream of the testimony in the video player above. Delays are possible. If there is not a livestream available, check back at a later time.
Texas Department of Public Safety Director Steve McCraw is expected to testify during the hearing in Austin, according to CNN and Texas Tribune.
This is the first time McCraw has spoken publicly since a few days after the May 24 shooting, when a gunman killed 19 students and two teachers at Robb Elementary School.
At the time, McCraw gave a timeline of events and said the gunman was in the school for roughly 80 minutes before officers shot and killed him.
McCraw also said that UCISD Police Chief Pete Arredondo incorrectly assumed children were not at risk for casualties, so Arredondo did not give orders sooner to confront the gunman.
The special committee, called To Protect All Texans, will discuss school safety, police training and social media.
The Texas House is holding separate hearings for its own investigative committee meetings, but those testimonies have taken place largely behind closed doors in executive sessions.
However, the Texas Senate committee’s hearings are expected to be public on Tuesday and Wednesday.
The Texas Senate hearings are taking place as Texas Senate Democrats once again urged Gov. Greg Abbott to call a special session to address gun violence.
State Sen. Roland Gutierrez, D-San Antonio, whose district includes Uvalde, has repeatedly urged the Republican governor to take action.
Gutierrez is not on the To Protect All Texans special committee.
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