18-year-old Salvador Ramos has been identified as the suspect in the deadly shooting today at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas.
According to reports, before crashing in front of the school, Ramos shot his grandmother, who is still in critical condition at this time. After crashing his car, wearing body armor, he walked into the school and opened fire leaving at least 18 students deceased as well as 4th-grade teacher, Eva Mireles. Once law enforcement arrived, they shot and killed Ramos and confirmed he acted alone. There are still two additional teachers and three adults, including a police officer, in either critical or stable condition at surrounding hospitals.
President Biden addressed this devastating incident saying, "Why are we willing to live with this carnage? Why do we keep letting this happen? Where in God’s name is our backbone to have the courage to deal with and stand up to the lobbyists," Biden said.
Biden said it is time to "turn this pain into action" for the parents and citizens of the US.
"We have to make it clear to every elected official in this country it’s time to act,” he said.
Former President Obama also addressed today's shooting: “Across the country, parents are putting their children to bed, reading stories, singing lullabies—and in the back of their minds, they’re worried about what might happen tomorrow after they drop their kids off at school, or take them to a grocery store or any other public space.”
“Michelle and I grieve with the families in Uvalde, who are experiencing pain no one should have to bear. We’re also angry for them. Nearly ten years after Sandy Hook—and ten days after Buffalo—our country is paralyzed, not by fear, but by a gun lobby and a political party that have shown no willingness to act in any way that might help prevent these tragedies.”
“It’s long past time for action, any kind of action. And it’s another tragedy—a quieter but no less tragic one—for families to wait another day. May God bless the memory of the victims, and in the words of Scripture, heal the brokenhearted and bind up their wounds.”
Our hearts are with every family of victims in today's mass shooting.
----UPDATES----
The first student identified in the mass shooting is 4th grader Xavier Lopez who was at the school with his mother during an awards ceremony just hours before the shooting.
The Father of 10-year-old Amerie Jo Garza has confirmed his daughter was one of the students killed in the Texas school mass shooting.
Irma Garcia has been identified as one of the teachers killed in the Uvalde, Texas school shooting. She taught at the school for 23 years.
The remaining children identified are
- Annabelle Guadalupe
- Tess Mata
- Uziyah Garcia
- Nevaeh Bravo
- Rojelio Torres
- Jailah Nicole Silguero
- Makenna Elrod
- Miranda Mathis
- Jose Flores
- Maite Yuleana
- Lexi Rubio
- Jayce Carmelo Luevanos
- Eliahana Torres
- Ellie Garcia
- Alithia Ramirez
In a press conference, Governor Abbot says mental health was not a factor in this mass shooting. He also indicates the shooter posted on his Facebook, which has since been taken down by the platform, updates on what he was doing posting "I’m going to shoot my grandmother" and "I shot my grandmother." About 15 minutes before opening fire inside of Robb Elementary School he posted to Facebook once last time saying "I’m going to shoot an elementary school."