After Years-Long Fight, Uvalde School Board Relents

After more than three years of legal disputes, the Uvalde Consolidated Independent School District board on Monday voted unanimously to release records from the 2022 Robb Elementary mass shooting, an attack that left 19 children and two teachers dead. The decision follows a Texas appeals court's ruling last week in which it sided with media outlets seeking access to documents about law enforcement's widely criticized response.

During an open forum ahead of the vote, Fox News reports Uvalde County Commissioner Ronald Garza urged the board to stop resisting release, noting that taxpayers were footing the bill for continued legal battles. Gloria Cazares, whose daughter Jackie was among those killed, highlighted the "unanswered questions" victims' relatives have been forced to live since the May 2022 shooting. "I'm here today to demand the truth," she said. "You all owe it to Jackie, to her classmates, to her teachers."

Members apologized for their previous reluctance to share information. Board Secretary Jesse Rizo, Jackie's uncle, per KERA News, told attendees, "I'm sorry it took so long. I'm sorry we failed you." KSAT reports no date was given for the release.