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On December 1, the City of Uvalde filed a lawsuit against Christina Mitchell, Uvalde District Attorney, on allegations that she refused to aid in an independent investigation into the May 24 Robb Elementary school massacre.
As per Buzzfeed, the City of Uvalde has launched an independent investigation into authorities' response to the massacre. The probe began after locals reacted with outrage towards law enforcement for allegedly botching the effective response to the massacre, which eventually led to the deaths of 21, including the shooter.
The lawsuit claims Christina Mitchell refused to provide investigation records and bodycam footage to Jesse Prado, a former New Austin law enforcement official leading the investigation.
Further details of the lawsuit against the Uvalde District Attorney
In an official statement, the City of Uvalde rationalized the lawsuit against Christina Mitchell, claiming that it is necessary to ensure the same mistakes aren't repeated in the future.
The statement read:
"From day one, the city’s focus is on helping the entire (...) community, parents who lost children, children who lost parents, and young survivors navigate through the healing process."
The statement continued:
"Transparency and accountability are part of that process. We hope this lawsuit will allow the City’s investigation into the conduct of its officers to be completed so as to give the community and families the answers they deserve."
In July, The Texas Tribune reported that Mitchell claimed she was assisting in the independent investigation to the best of her ability.
The DA said:
“We’re trying to make sure that they’re getting the resources that they need. And then I am telling them where I am in the investigation. And so those conversations have been ongoing.”
However, Uvalde Mayor Don McLaughlin provided a contradictory account of Mitchell's attitude towards releasing investigation resources. In an official statement, he said that the DA told city officials that if they aided in Prado's independent investigation, the city's ongoing investigation into the massacre would be negatively affected.
McLaughlin claimed:
“(Mitchell said that) any release of records to that incident at this time would interfere with said ongoing investigation.”
In an interview with CNN, McLaughlin said that an independent investigation was necessary if the victims' families were to get justice.
He said:
“We need to know the facts so that we can take the next step. The family should have been briefed all along through this of what’s going on, what’s happening, where they are in the investigation. It’s my opinion they should be."
He continued:
"And we should be as the city, we should have been briefed of where we’re at and what’s going on so that we can make decisions we need to make.”
The City of Uvalde is also a defendant in a separate $27 billion lawsuit filed by victims' families. It stated that the city's officials must be held accountable for their inadequate response to the mass shooting.
