CLEVELAND — There are far more questions then answers about security at schools both in Texas and across the nation in the wake of the tragedy in Uvalde, especially when it comes down to how long the shooter was able to get inside and wreak havoc at the school.
"Approximately an hour later, US Border Patrol tactical teams arrived," a Texas Ranger announced at Thursday's press conference. "They make entry, shoot and kill the suspect."
One hour, 60 minutes, 3,600 seconds—that's approximately how long the Uvalde shooter remained in Robb Elementary School after officers took fire and then retreated to a perimeter outside.
"More than two decades after the Columbine shooting, the best practices for law enforcement shifted from setting up a perimeter and waiting for SWAT team to the first officers on scene gong inside and neutralizing the shooter," Cleveland security expert Ken Trump told 3News.
This policy of immediate engagement with a school shooter is twice as old as the child victims in Texas. It was also a serious topic in Parkland back in 2018, when the deputy assigned as the school resource officer didn't confront that gunman who killed 17 and injured 17 more.
Trump believes tactical training needs to be focused on more than technology. He says drills and knowledge are what will help people survive, but still encourages we give law enforcement the benefit of the doubt as more details come out.
"We would expect our first responders to drill, have trained, practiced, worked with multiple other agencies, work with their schools, and reduced some of those risks for errors," he added.
As parents in Northeast Ohio feel frightened dropping their children off at school after seeing what tool place in Uvalde, Trump wants them to keep this perspective.
"The vast majority of schools will never have a school shooting," he said.
The other big piece Trump pointed to that is making news out of Uvalde more difficult is public officials having to backtrack, including on whether or not the school had a resource officer that interacted with the shooter. He would like to see smaller bits of vetted, accurate information released.