U.S. attorney general meets with Uvalde families ahead of federal report about police response to school shooting

U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland met with the families of those killed in the 2022 Uvalde school shooting one day before a federal report into the halting and haphazard law enforcement response to the incident was set to be released. 

During his visit on Wednesday, Garland saw murals of the victims that have been painted around Uvalde. The community of 15,000 is still struggling with the trauma of the shooting, which left 19 elementary students and two teachers dead. Justice Department officials also privately briefed family members on the contents of the report, conducted by the U.S. Department of Justice, at a community center in Uvalde on Wednesday night. The report will be released Thursday. 

The review by the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services was launched just days after the shooting, and local prosecutors are still evaluating a separate criminal investigation by the Texas Rangers. Several of the officers involved have lost their jobs.