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New details emerged Wednesday about the 18-year-old who opened fire at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, killing at least 19 students and two teachers.
The gunman was fatally shot by law enforcement officers responding to the shooting at the grade school in Uvalde, about 80 miles west of San Antonio.
On Wednesday, President Joe Biden again called on Congress to pass gun reform legislation. He said he believes gun reforms can be passed that would have a “significant impact” on the amount of violence with “no negative impact on the Second Amendment.”
Meanwhile, Beto O’Rourke, a Democratic candidate for Texas governor, interrupted Republican Gov. Greg Abbott's news conference Wednesday, telling him that the shooting was “totally predictable” and that he was “doing nothing.”
Teacher killed in school shooting remembered as ‘amazing’
One of the teachers who was killed by a gunman who attacked the Robb Elementary School in Texas was remembered as a kind educator protective of her students.
Marisela Villalobos, who used to work at Robb Elementary, said that her son was also taught by the slain teacher, Irma Garcia.
“My son had a hard time going to school. She would buy him Happy Meals and take him Happy Meals, and he would have lunch with her at school,” Villalobos told MSNBC near a memorial in Uvalde.
“She was just amazing with him. He just loved her so much and she loved him so much,” Villalobos said.
Garcia was one of 21 people, mostly students, killed when an 18-year-old gunman opened fire at the elementary school Tuesday. The gunman was killed by law enforcement, officials said. Nineteen of the victims were children.
Garcia’s son has said that a friend in law enforcement who was at the scene saw Garcia shielding her students.
Villalobos said that would not be a surprise. “That’s the type of person that she was. She was just amazing,” Villalobos said. “And I just can’t believe this.”
A city's grief captured
The editors of the Uvalde Leader-News captured the mood of their shattered Texas city in the Wednesday edition of the paper published the day after an 18-year-old gunman went into Robb Elementary and opened fire, killing 19 children and two teachers.
Uvalde, San Antonio, Austin host vigils for school slaying victims
Mourners in Uvalde and other Texas cities held vigils Wednesday for the 19 children and two teachers killed in Tuesday’s shooting at an elementary school.
“Our hearts are broken. We are devastated,” Pastor Tony Gruben of Baptist Temple Church said Wednesday evening at the Uvalde County Fairplex.
Vigils were also held in San Antonio and in the state capital, Austin.
In San Antonio, around 80 miles to the east, a crying woman distributed flowers and balloons to the mourners who gathered at San Fernando Cathedral.
“We’re here for Uvalde,” Mayor Ron Nirenberg said. “We’re here to be a witness to the collective trauma.”
For one teacher in Uvalde, it was ‘the longest 35 minutes of my life’
Her students had been watching a Disney movie Tuesday morning as part of their year-end celebration. When she heard gunfire explode down the hall, she knew exactly what it was. She shouted for her kids to get under their desks and sprinted to lock her classroom door.
The children did exactly as they were told, she said.
“They’ve been practicing for this day for years,” the Robb Elementary School teacher said, referring to the active shooter exercises that have become as much a fixture of public education in America as math, science and reading. “They knew this wasn’t a drill. We knew we had to be quiet or else we were going to give ourselves away.”
Parkland survivor David Hogg 'cautiously optimistic' after meetings with senators
David Hogg, who became a gun safety advocate after he survived the school shooting in Parkland, Florida, in 2018, said Wednesday he hopes Congress can pass "impactful legislation" in the near future.
Speaking to NBC News after meetings with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., Hogg said he was feeling "cautiously optimistic" there would be some action.
“We’re going to do impactful legislation, and we’re going to work to figure out who we can work with, with Republicans, in order to actually get something done. Because the reality is we know what we disagree on. We need to talk about what we can agree on, because kids are dying every day," Hogg said. "We can’t wait. We can’t afford to wait.”
He said he plans to apply pressure to lawmakers from the inside, and with summer break approaching, he expects young people will apply pressure to lawmakers from the outside. “So lots of good trouble coming,” he said.
Senate gun talks center on red flag laws after Texas school shooting
WASHINGTON — Democrats want votes on bills that would expand background checks for gun purchases. Republicans say better security measures could harden schools against violent attacks.
But a day after a gunman killed 19 children and two teachers at a Texas elementary school, a small group of Democrats and Republicans expressed hope that they might be able to find common ground elsewhere: federal red flag legislation.
So-called red or yellow flag laws, already on the books in some states, allow authorities to temporarily seize firearms from people who are found to be dangers to themselves or others.
A handful of Senate Democrats and Republicans kicked off informal talks Wednesday about what — if anything — lawmakers could agree on to stop the proliferation of mass shootings after a decade of inaction on Capitol Hill.
Students were celebrating. Then came a day of horror.
The academic term at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, was coming to a close, and celebration was in the air.
In neon-colored Facebook posts, Robb administrators announced lively events, like field trips and classroom parties. High school seniors dropped by Monday to give high fives. Tuesday was shaping up to be especially festive: “Footloose and Fancy,” a chance to wear “fun/fancy shoes,” and “Awards Day,” a commemoration of achievement.
Xavier Lopez, a 10-year-old fourth grade student with jet-black hair and wise eyes, accepted an honor roll award Tuesday morning. He held up his paper certificate and posed for photos in front of pink and red balloons.
Jose Flores, another 10-year-old fourth grader, accepted his honor roll certificate with a wide, toothy grin, standing proudly under a black-and-white banner that said, “ROBB 22.”
Hours later, Xavier and Jose were dead.
Livestreaming app Yubo says it is investigating an account possibly linked to gunman
A livestreaming platform called Yubo said it is investigating an account that could have been used by Salvador Ramos. Screenshots of a Yubo user profile believed to be Ramos' were disseminated on Twitter and TikTok.
“We are deeply saddened by this unspeakable loss and are fully cooperating with law enforcement on their investigation," a representative for Yubo said in an emailed statement. "At this stage, we are not legally able to release any specific user information outside of direct requests from law enforcement, but can confirm that we are investigating an account that has since been banned from the platform.”
Yubo, which has 50 million users worldwide, allows users to livestream themselves over audio and video with up to 10 other people. Yubo, which is largely used by teenagers, tripled its audience during the pandemic.
