Texas law enforcement's slow response to the school shooting in Uvalde, where a gunman killed 19 children and two teachers, was on Sunday criticised by state legislators who said more decisive action could have saved lives.
A total of 376 officers — border guards, state and city police, local sheriff departments and elite forces — responded to the May 24 massacre at Robb Elementary School, members of the US state's House of Representatives said in a preliminary report.
But the politicians said the situation was "chaotic" due to the officers' "lackadaisical approach" to subduing the gunman.
Seventy-three minutes elapsed between the first officers' arrival and the shooter's death, an "unacceptably long period of time".
"The void of leadership could have contributed to the loss of life," the report said.
While the report acknowledged it was likely that most of the victims died immediately after the first shots were fired, some died while being transferred to the hospital.
"It is plausible that some victims could have survived if they had not had to wait 73 additional minutes for rescue," the report said.
According to the text, which does not incriminate certain police teams over others, law enforcement officers "failed to adhere to their active shooter training, and they failed to prioritise saving the lives of innocent victims over their own safety".
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Alanna De Leon writes the name of her friend, Annabelle Rodriguez, who died in the shooting. AFP -
Pallbearers carry the coffin of Amerie Jo Garza into Sacred Heart Catholic Church. AP -
Pallbearers carry the coffin of Amerie Jo Garza, who died in the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School. AFP -
A memorial in Town Square, Uvalde, Texas, for victims of the Robb Elementary school shooting. Reuters -
A woman places a rose on Layla Salazar’s memorial cross, who was one of the victims that died in the shooting. Reuters -
Bags with brisket sandwiches and a snack that will be sold at a fundraiser for families of the victims. Reuters -
Ashtyn Leigh, 18, hands a man a brisket meal. Reuters -
A choir sings in front of the memorial. Reuters -
People pray in front of memorial crosses. Reuters -
Nineteen children and two adults were killed in the shooting. AFP -
People visit a memorial for the victims. AFP -
Flowers are left outside the school. AFP -
Twenty-one empty chairs are seen outside of a daycare center as a memorial for the victims. AP Photo -
Football teammates of Tess Mata, who died in the Texas school shooting, cry as they visit a makeshift memorial outside the Uvalde County Courthouse. AFP -
A football teammate of shooting victim Tess Mata cries, supported by her mother. AFP -
Texas police faced angry questions over why it took an hour to stop the gunman who murdered 19 children and two teachers in Uvalde, as video emerged of desperate parents begging officers to storm the school. AFP -
Activists join Senate Democrats outside the Capitol, in Washington, to demand action on gun control legislation after the killings at the Texas elementary school this week. AP -
The George R Brown Convention Centre, site of the National Rifle Association annual convention. Days after the deadliest mass school shooting in Texas history, the gun lobbyist group is meeting in Houston, from Friday until Sunday. Reuters -
Pastor Carlos Contreras preaches to his congregation as photos of some of the children killed in the mass shooting at Robb Elementary flash on the screen at Primera Iglesia Bautista, in Uvalde. Reuters -
People march after a vigil held to stand with the Uvalde families and demand an end to gun violence in Newtown, Connecticut. AP -
A woman holds up a banner at the end of the vigil in Newtown, Connecticut. AP -
Newtown was the scene of the 2012 attack at Sandy Hook Elementary School, when 20 pupils and six teachers were killed by a gunman. AP -
Candles are lit for each victim as people pray at St Philip's Episcopal Church. EPA -
A makeshift memorial in front of Robb Elementary School. AFP -
Omahar Padillo with his son Omahar Jr, 12, during a community prayer, in Pharr, Texas, for the shooting victims at Robb Elementary School. AP -
Omahar Padillo Jr, 12, and his sister Samantha, 9, with their mother, Silvia Padillo, write messages in support of the victims at Robb Elementary School. AP -
A vigil for the victims of the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School. AFP -
A young mourner at the vigil in Uvalde, Texas. AFP -
Families at the vigil. AFP -
A woman holds a photo of Nevaeh Bravo, who was killed in the mass shooting, during a vigil for the victims of the massacre in Uvalde, Texas. AFP -
Uvalde County Sheriff Ruben Nolasco is comforted by Senator Ted Cruz during a vigil at the Uvalde County Fairplex Arena. AP -
Diana Karau of Uvalde with a therapy dog named Tritan before a vigil to honour those killed at Robb Elementary. AP -
Gun-control advocates Dana Cibulski, left, and Judi Giannini attend a vigil outside the National Rifle Association headquarters in Fairfax, Virginia after the mass shooting in Uvalde, Texas. AFP -
Uziyah Garcia, 8, was among those killed in the shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas. AP -
Pastor Jaime Cabralez, the uncle of shooting victim 10-year-old Eliahana Cruz Torres, is surrounded in prayer at his church in Uvalde, Texas on Wednesday. Reuters -
A woman embraces a child outside Willie de Leon Civic Centre, in Uvalde, where pupils were taken after the school shooting. Bloomberg -
Gun-control advocates hold a vigil outside the National Rifle Association (NRA) headquarters in Fairfax, Virginia. AFP -
A woman and child leave the Civic Centre. Reuters
Steve McCraw, Texas's public safety chief, has previously described the police response to the attack as an "abject failure", with most of his criticism on Uvalde school district police chief Pete Arredondo.
Mr Arredondo, who has been suspended pending the investigation result, "did not assume his preassigned responsibility of incident command" and made analytical errors because he did not have all the necessary information, the Texas politicians said.
But no other officers offered to help or replace him, the report said.
"There was an overall lackadaisical approach by law enforcement at the scene," it said. "The scene was chaotic, without any person obviously in charge or directing the law enforcement response."
The committee presented its findings to the victims' relatives, who have for weeks denounced a lack of transparency from authorities and accused them of seeking to cover up police failures in the case.
Public criticism of Texas authorities surged last week after the release of surveillance camera video obtained by local media.
The footage shows the shooter arriving at Robb Elementary school with a semi-automatic rifle and the officers' long wait in the hallway before finally breaching the classroom where the gunman was.
