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The Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) on Friday announced that the Uvalde County District Attorney’s Office has moved to block the release of a 77-minute video that shows footage of the May 24 mass shooting at Robb Elementary School.
Republican state Rep. Dustin Burroughs was told in a letter this week by Texas DPS Deputy Director of Homeland Security Operations Freeman Martin that even though the footage does not show children, DPS has been told not to release it, Fox 7 Austin first reported.
Burroughs, chairman of the House committee investigating the Robb shooting, said he requested a copy of the video without the audio as part of the preliminary report the committee is working on.
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DPS responded and said that while they would like to release the video, the District Attorney’s Office has instructed them not to.
Martin said in response to Burroughs’ letter that DPS believes “the video will likely bring clarity to the public regarding the tragic events in Uvalde.”
“In fact, releasing this video will help us provide as much transparency to the public as possible without interfering with the investigation in the way that an immediate public release of all the evidence would,” he added.
Uvalde Mayor Don McLaughlin also supported Burroughs’ request Friday and said the video “will likely bring clarity to the public, the families of the victims and the survivors.”
Texas State Sen. Roland Gutierrez, who represents Uvalde, questioned Texas Department of Public Safety Director Stephen McCraw. (Fox New Digital)
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The video in question ends just before the break into the 4th grade classroom where the gunman, identified as Salvador Ramos, killed 21 people, including 19 children.
Questions remain as to why the armed law enforcement officers waited more than an hour before confronting the gunman.
Some reports suggested there were missed opportunities where police could have stopped Ramos before he entered the school, although the mayor of Ulvade rejected those claims this week.
The investigation into the fatal attack is ongoing, and District Attorney Christina Mitchell-Busby has faced criticism for her reportedly slow response to parents demanding answers.
People leave the Uvalde Civic Center on Tuesday, May 24, 2022. (AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills)
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McLaughlin, in coordination with state Sen. Roland Gutierrez, sent a letter to GOP Gov. Greg Abbott this week calling for her removal after parents complained they couldn’t access the victim assistance fund.
Fox News was not immediately able to reach Mitchell-Busby, and it remains unclear why she blocked the video.
Caitlin McFaul is a reporter for Fox News Digital. You can reach her at caitlin.mcfall@fox.com or @ctlnmcfall on Twitter.
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