AUSTIN, Texas — On Monday, a Texas House committee looking into the deadly mass shooting at a Uvalde elementary school will gather at the State Capitol for its next hearing.
Uvalde Sheriff Ruben Nolasco will appear before the committee to share his side of how the events surrounding the Robb Elementary School shooting played out. Nolasco will give his testimony behind closed doors via Zoom.
Prior to his agreement to testify, the House Investigative Committee sent Nolasco a "notice of deposition" that warned he could face civil penalties if he declined to appear. The next day, the sheriff agreed to appear before the committee.
In a letter to the committee, Nolasco said he felt it was "untimely to participate in the Texas House Investigative Committee's critical incident review" and that he wanted to "avoid damaging the integrity of the case." Nolasco also said his office has "cooperated to the fullest extent" with separate criminal investigations surrounding the Robb Elementary School shooting.
So far, 19 law enforcement officials have given their testimony.
Also on Monday, the Texas House committee reportedly could release surveillance footage from the hallways of Robb Elementary on the day of the shooting.
Last month, KVUE obtained a surveillance photo showing officers standing in the school hallway with rifles and at least one ballistic shield. KVUE Senior Reporter Tony Plohetski, along with KVUE's news partners at the Austin American-Statesman, had a chance to review the footage.
According to the report, the video showed the gunman walking into the school carrying an AR-15. He stopped in front of a classroom before continuing down the hallway to rooms 111 and 112. Three minutes after the initial shooting, officers from the Uvalde Police Department and Uvalde school district moved in from two ends of the hall. They were pushed back by the gunman shooting at them, per the report.
For the next hour, the video shows officers in the hallway armed with shields and high-powered weapons but not entering the classrooms until 12:52 p.m. to take down the shooter.
A separate report released by the Advanced Law Enforcement Rapid Response Training Center, or ALERRT, said law enforcement had three different chances to stop the gunman before the mass shooting. Uvalde Mayor Don McLaughlin has refuted ALERRT's report and said he welcomes the release of the surveillance footage.
The head of the Texas House Investigative Committee said the video's release would provide clarity and transparency to the public. However, Uvalde County's district attorney has instructed the Texas Department of Public Safety not to release the video.
Monday's hearing is set to begin at 9 a.m.
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