Uvalde Mass Shooting 1-Year Later

One year ago, we witness incompetence by Texas law enforcement at its height! There were 19 fourth-grade students shot to death along with two of their teachers. It took nearly 400 police officers from various agencies Texas DPS, Uvalde School Police, Border Patrol, and Texas Rangers, … to finally decide and breach the classroom and terminate the shooter. A harrowing experience for the students, school staff, and the families involved. Parents and families as the chaos ensued plead with police officers live on television to let them try and get their children, but to no avail. Governor Abbott was quick to come on television and credit the officers for their bravery in the line of fire. Later to find out that it took them some 70+ minutes to decide to go in. And, then hesitantly retracting his previous accolades about the officers and irresponsibly pointing fingers somewhere else as we have found out at least on one other mass shooting occasion since – same ole excuse. How many children’s lives could have been saved if someone would have taken charge and decided to eliminate the threat?

I and my family were victims of a mass shooting in May 1979 at the annual Battle of Flowers parade in San Antonio, TX. Ira Attebury was the assailant then. We were perched to watch the parade right where the bands were first positioned. Ira Attebury happened to walk by. He was probably 6 ft 2 in tall, shaved head, and wearing what we use to know as an old Jim Bowie leather attire. He walked around and seem to have gone into the parked motor van at the corner of the main strip (Broadway St.) and the side road where the parade participants were assembling. Once the first band formed and the two motorcycle police officers assembled as the leads on the main road are when Attebury started shooting at the crowd in front of him and at the police almost simultaneously. The officers fired from behind their downed motorcycles but were overwhelmed by Attebury’s firepower. Meantime, we were only 50-60 feet across the street from the motor van. I grabbed two of my kids and launched into the pavement and behind a parking block while at the same time yelling at my wife to grab the baby out of the stroller. We laid there for some 2 hrs. and 20 minutes! While Attebury delivered a rampage of gunfire. The San Antonio SWAT Team was praised for making a quick rescue! Let me say this again 2 hrs. and 20 minutes in the hot sun. I was in the military then and when we were escorted to cover about one-hundred yards away under I-35 I remember asking one of the officers to let me have one of the M-16s so that I could shoot Attebury since no one else was. I could clearly see his head and upper torso from that distance. Having been an expert marksman I did not feel I could miss! Of course, “I was out of line, I was told.” Some four decades have passed since that harrowing day, and I still remember it clearly. Feared it much more than what I experienced having had a career in the military and engaged in several conflicts – I knew who the enemy was and perhaps that made the difference psychologically.

Let’s hope that the DOJ and FBI investigation yields accountability, lessons learned, and somewhat a better understanding of the details of that day for the parents. Accountability for the lack of leadership starts with the Governor the DPS Chief and the officers involved where there is quite a bit of video as forensics. Perhaps they should hold themselves accountable and seek a career somewhere else.