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Chip W. King is Interviewed about the Texas School Shooting; Gunman Barricaded Himself in Classroom; Biden Comments on Shooting; Aired 9-9:30a ET

Aired May 25, 2022 - 09:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[09:00:32]

ERICA HILL, CNN ANCHOR: America's recurring nightmare. One that seems to only happen in this country. Yet another massacre in an elementary school. This time in Texas.

Thank you for joining us this hour. I'm Erica Hill.

JIM SCIUTTO, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Jim Sciutto.

Trust me, I hate reading these headlines, as much as you -- as much as you must hate hearing them, but these are the facts.

Right now, at least 19 children and two adults are dead after an 18- year-old gunman opened fire on second, third and fourth graders at the Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas. The gunman shot his grandmother before carrying out the attack at the school. She is now fighting for her life in a hospital. Authorities say the suspect is dead. Killed by police.

We know he was wearing a tactical vest. It does not appear, though, that there were panels in that vest. And responding officers faced fire from the suspect as they tried to stop the killing in the school. At least one Border Patrol agent -- they were called in to help -- was wounded.

While it remains unclear exactly what weapons the killer used, these photos showing two AR-15-style rifles were posted to an Instagram account linked to the gunman. One of his social media bios read, quote, kids be scared.

HILL: The unimaginable wait for families fearing the worst overnight. Some of them telling CNN authorities had asked them for DNA samples to help identify the dead.

In an emotional speech, President Biden addressed the nation last night.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Beautiful, innocent second, third, and fourth graders.

As a nation, we have to ask, when in God's name are we going to stand up to the gun lobby? When in God's name we do what we all know in our gut needs to be done?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: Hours after an honor roll ceremony at that elementary school, just days away from the start of their summer vacation, now families are planning funerals, and the community is waiting for the agonizing confirmation, learning who was gunned down, which lives senselessly cut short.

SCIUTTO: Yes. So many.

Once again, we are covering every angle of this developing story from the scene to the White House.

First, I do want to hear from one of the first responders who arrived at the scene as the shooting was still ongoing.

Let's speak now to Chip King. He's a member of the Uvalde City Council, also a firefighter for the fire department there.

Chip, it's good to have you on this morning.

CHIP W. KING, MEMBER, UVALDE CITY COUNCIL: Good morning.

SCIUTTO: First, when you arrived at the scene, my understanding is the shooting was still going on. I don't want you to have to recount these moments unduly, but perhaps you can help capture for us what went on and what it was like as it went on.

KING: Well, obviously, being with the fire department, we were -- we were called in to kind of try to get a perimeter set up, to control vehicles in and out, control people coming in and out. Assist the EMS in getting their ambulances in and getting them out as needed and land the helicopters.

Initially, we weren't all directly on the scene in front of the school, but we were pretty close. And it was evident that the -- it was not a secure scene. That, you know, there was a lot still going on here. It was a very chaotic scene initially.

SCIUTTO: How long did it take from the time you arrived there for police and first responders to enter the school building?

KING: I think they were -- they were in the school but it sounded like the shooter may have been barricaded in a certain area of one of the rooms. It was probably 30 minutes after we arrived, after I arrived, I know that, that the shooter was neutralized.

SCIUTTO: Thirty minutes. Goodness. 30 minutes. So much time.

Do we know if this school was a planned target? Because there appeared to be a chase. And as we just showed pictures of this, the shooter's car in that ditch there, when first responders first engaged the shooter before he entered the school. Do we know if this was a target in the moment or did he plan to go there?

KING: I -- you know, I don't know. And I don't know if -- how deep they dug into his social media information that's out there.

[09:05:05]

But it seems he was coming toward the school. I don't think there was a chase on initially from what I heard. But I'm not sure why he crashed when he got here. And -- but he did leave the truck and go straight to the school.

SCIUTTO: One bit of news this morning seems to be, from what we've heard, and, again, I know it's early, so these facts and details get confirmed over time, but that the shooter barricaded himself in one classroom there. Is it your understanding that all those who lost their lives were in that one classroom?

KING: I'm not sure what the -- I'm not sure what exactly -- how it worked out inside. I think there's two rooms involved at least. And -- that he was in one room where the shooting ended.

SCIUTTO: School -- first responders have, over the years, changed their training and tactics when there is an active shooter to be more aggressive, if that's the right word, but to act quickly, right, to go in and confront rather than wait. You're a member the fire department. I imagine you've received some training in this sort of thing. Is that your understanding as to how first responders responded to this shooting?

KING: Absolutely. I mean we're trained -- we're trained how to respond when we get here, what to -- what we're supposed to do. You know, scene safety is the number one thing and protecting yourself and protecting all your partners is number one. And that's our first thing to do when we -- when we arrive, protect ourselves, protect everybody else, because we're no good if we're injured. So, scene safety is job one of our -- for the fire department and EMS.

SCIUTTO: Final question, if I can ask. Many parents were still searching for their children hours after the shooting. And at least yesterday we were told that several parents still had not accounted for their children.

Do you have any update on whether all children have been accounted for and parents been notified?

KING: I don't have that information this morning. I've not been able to go to the command center and see.

SCIUTTO: OK.

Well, Chip King, thanks for the work you were doing in the midst of this horrible, horrible event. And we appreciate you joining us.

KING: All right, thank you, sir.

HILL: CNN crime and justice correspondent Shimon Prokupecz is in Uvalde, Texas, this morning.

And, Shimon, you just spoke a short time ago with Lieutenant Chris Olivarez from the Texas Department of Public Safety. And I know he laid out a little bit more, some new details in terms of the timeline here and even where the alleged shooter was inside the school.

What is that new information he shared with you?

SHIMON PROKUPECZ, CNN CRIME AND JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Right. Well, first, Erica, I think it's important to note that all of the victims here have been identified. That was something new that he revealed to us. He said that the families have been notified of the identity of all the children that were killed here and the bodies were all removed. Remember last night some of the families were waiting to be notified, spent all night at a center. So I think that's important to note so that the families could begin their process -- and the healing process perhaps as well as this community.

Other significant information really has to do with the investigation. We learned from the lieutenant that the shooter here barricaded himself in one classroom. It's different from what we were told yesterday where there was information that the shooter may have went to some different classes, but it may be one classroom that's connected to another classroom. So he barricaded himself in that classroom. And the initial responding officers had a very hard time getting inside that room. He barricaded himself in such a way that they just couldn't breakthrough. So they needed to bring in tactical officers. And as you heard that interview that Jim just did, it sounds like he was in there for quite a significant amount of time and police say that he shot almost -- well, the majority of the people he shot, all the people he shot were in that room.

There's also information about the grandmother. As we've been reporting, he shot his grandmother. And then the police received a 911 call, they say, and that's what started this whole process. They say there was no pursuit, but they were able to find the suspect here, the shooter here, and that he had crashed into this ditch and then ran inside the classroom.

The lieutenant was describing how the police responded, how the tactical response went. Take a listen to that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PROKUPECZ: The tactical team that came, where did they come from and how long did it take for them to make entry?

LT. CHRIS OLIVAREZ, SPOKESMAN, TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY: It was a local team. Some of those were actually off duty Border Patrol agents as well. It's a comprised team of federal agents, local law enforcement. They all responded to the scene. They were able to make forcible entry.

As far as timeline, the response, I do not have that information right now, but they -- they reacted in a moments notice.

[09:10:01]

PROKUPECZ: Because it just seems -- right, because it just seems that he was in there for so long in that classroom and that the officers who were initially on scene couldn't do anything.

OLIVAREZ: Well, you also got to take into account too, when you -- when you have someone with this intent to just kill anybody, have no regard for human life, and also with a rifle, he can kill numerous people in a matter of seconds. So those officers were able to respond at a moment's notice and there could have been further loss of life if those initial officers weren't on scene to break those windows and rescue any other children and teachers that were inside that classroom.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PROKUPECZ: An hour ago -- we hope to learn more details because there still are a lot of questions about the exact timeline and how things transpired here. Police saying they're going to hold a press conference here later. Also, just quickly to note, the FBI is here with the evidence response team. We see them. I saw them in Buffalo last week. They respond to all of these mass shootings. They are out here, again, working with the Texas rangers as they conduct the investigation of this crime scene, Erica.

HILL: Yes, Shimon, appreciate it.

And as you noted, just off the top there, it is important that we do let folks know that all of the victims have been identified and, as you say, the families have been notified.

In terms of those victims, as those families are notified, some of them are choosing to share that information, obviously, with the public, and we're learning more about them.

Amerie Jo Garza. You see this picture here. Her dad confirming his 10- year-old daughter was one of the children killed in the attack. Writing in a post, thank you, everyone, for the prayers and help, trying to find my baby. She's been found. My little love is now flying high with the angels above. Please don't take a second for granted. Hug your family. Tell them you love them. I love you, Amerie Jo. Watch over your baby brother for me.

SCIUTTO: Erica, I hear you because as a parent I'm sure you're imagining your own kids in the same situation. And we all do that. And, by the way, you don't have to be a parent to feel that same sense of grief. And I'm sure many folks watching right now moved to tears when they see pictures like that of little children, dead.

CNN correspondent Adrienne Broaddus, she's at the hospital where some of the victims were taken.

Adrienne, are there more injured? Are there more people fighting for their lives right now?

ADRIENNE BROADDUS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We do know that at least 13 patients were transported to this hospital in town. Two of them, according to the hospital spokesperson, were deceased when they arrived here at the hospital. In their honor, this -- flags behind me have been lowered. But to those of you watching and listening, we hear the pain in my

colleague, Erica, in her voice as she read that post from Mr. Garza. No -- children are supposed to outlive their parents. And now we have 19 children who are dead, and two adults. The parents of those 19 children, whether it's the mom, dad, guardian, grandparent, they're now planning funerals. That will likely be the next step. And part of that process includes picking the perfect casket, finding the right color or urn, something that will reflect their child's personality, and their short life.

We're talking about 10-year-olds. We're talking about second, third, fourth graders. We did hear that that shooter, the 18-year-old, barricaded himself in one classroom. We also know Mr. Garza posted about three hours ago, kind of taking us along with him as he processes what happened. And I'm reading from the Facebook page. He said, oh my sweet baby, I love you so much. And then there's an emoji of a broken heart. And he says, I will never be happy or complete again.

Earlier in the day, we heard from the father who lost a child in the Parkland shooting, and he talked about this type of emotion, saying that this is what some of these families would experience. He predicted we would hear this from some of the parents.

Another victim who has been identified by her relatives was a fourth grade teacher at Robb Elementary. According to the district's website, she posted on the website, to her students, she let the students know that she wanted them to know a little bit about her as they planned to start their fourth grade year, telling them they were going to have such a fun and exciting year. She said she had been an educator for 17 years. Not only were the students her children, she also had her own personal family, a daughter and three, what she called furry friends.

[09:15:02]

She enjoyed running and hiking.

And so here we are, tomorrow was supposed to be the last day of school for these children. They had a week of celebration over at the elementary school. It was almost like spirit week. So much excitement cut short.

Jim and Erica.

SCIUTTO: Adrienne, thank you.

Erica, how you doing?

HILL: I mean, look, Jim, I think how -- we're doing how -- how is anybody doing this morning when you look at how this keeps happening. And I -- you and I have covered too many of these and I try really hard. It's getting harder.

SCIUTTO: Yes.

HILL: Every time we report on these and you look at the pain in these parents' faces and you think of the communities that are impacted forever and the trauma they'll feel, the families, the first responders, the teachers, every single person who works in that school, the other children who survived. And this is --

SCIUTTO: Impacted forever is the way to describe it. I mean lives are lost forever and those families left behind. They will carry this for the rest of their lives, right? And we see a lot of flags lowered to half-staff. Doesn't make a lot of difference.

HILL: It doesn't. You know, it's a symbol, but inevitably there are also calls for action that often seem to fall on deaf ears.

Some of those calls for action, as we know, coming from President Biden last night in a very emotional plea for change.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: As a nation we have to ask, when in God's name are we going to stand up to the gun lobby? When in God's name will we do what we all know in our gut needs to be done?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:21:11]

SCIUTTO: President Biden is calling on the country to turn its collective pain into political action. During his address to the nation last night, the president not only pleaded with Congress to pass gun reforms, but he says there's so much more that needs to be done. Of course, Erica, not the first time we've heard that. Biden himself was put in charge of a response after Sandy Hook ten years ago.

HILL: Yes.

CNN's MJ Lee is at the White House this morning.

MJ, you were actually on AIR FORCE ONE when the president first learned about the shooting. When and how did he share that information?

MJ LEE, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, all of this unfolded as President Biden was on Air Force One, traveling back from his five-day trip to Asia. We in the press cabin actually learned about this when White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre came back and suddenly told us that she had an update to share, and that's when she told us that the shooting had occurred, that the president had been briefed, and that as soon as he got back to the White House, he intended to deliver a speech to the nation in the evening. That's when we decided to turn the TVs back on and saw CNN reporting on the horrific shooting. And, actually, at that moment, it was in the afternoon, sometime around 5:00 p.m., the chyrons were showing that so many children had already been confirmed dead. And, of course, now this morning, that number has gone up even more.

Now, we know that the president spent the rest of that flight being briefed by various advisers on what was going on, on the ground. The other thing he did, of course, was make that phone call to Texas Governor Greg Abbott to let him know that he was ready to give him any kind of help that his state needed.

We also know that he spent a part of that time on Air Force One drafting that speech that he ended up delivering last night where we saw him get visibly emotional and frustrated as he found himself, again, in the position of calling for action on guns.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Beautiful, innocent second, third, and fourth graders. And how many scores of little children who witnessed what happened, see their friends die as if they're on a battlefield for God's sake.

As a nation we have to ask, when in God's name are we going to stand up to the gun lobby? When in God's name will we do what we all know in our gut needs to be done?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEE: You know, the other thing that the president said in his speech was that he said he was struck during his flight back from Asia that this kind of thing doesn't happen in other countries. That this is a uniquely American event, these kinds of mass shootings. And just to illustrate this to you guys, Jim and Erica, it was right before the president left for his trip to Asia, you know he traveled to Buffalo, New York, to try to console a grieving community there because there had been a mass shooting at a supermarket. So, his major foreign trip was basically book ended by these two mass shootings. So just incredible how often these events are happening.

And you guys mentioned earlier on that he had been a part of this task force, leading this task force after the Sandy Hook shooting. And he was very disappointed then as vice president, but nothing major legislatively came out of that. And now, ten years later, here we are, he is president and he is once again calling on Congress to do something.

SCIUTTO: Yes. And where will he be asked to go next time, right? The sad question.

HILL: Yes.

SCIUTTO: MJ Lee, at the White House, thanks so much.

HILL: As we look at what is to come, there are also questions about what happened in that timeline, what happened in that 30 minutes, as we just learned, from a representative from the fire department who just spoke with Jim, what was happening in that school. What have we learned in the wake of so many mass shootings in this country about how to prevent them? [09:25:06]

That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:29:59]

SCIUTTO: Police in Uvalde, Texas, say that the first officers on the scene could hear gunshots inside the school.