Families of three surviving children from the Robb Elementary School massacre file lawsuit

(C) 2022 Texas Public Radio

Real. Reliable. Texas Public Radio.

Available On Air Stations

Bri Kirkham

/

Texas Public Radio

Law enforcement officers outside Robb Elementary School in Uvalde on Wednesday.

Families of survivors from the Robb Elementary School massacre filed a civil lawsuit this week against a group of defendants that includes law enforcement officials and the Uvalde school district.

California-based law firm Baum Hedlund and San Antonio lawyer Shawn C. Brown filed the lawsuit on behalf of three surviving children, including one who was wounded.

It seeks unspecified damages for intentional infliction of emotional distress against all defendants.

This includes the Uvalde school district, the city, law enforcement — including former district police chief Pete Arredondo and suspended Uvalde police Lt. Mariano Pargas — and gun manufacturers and sellers Daniel Defense and Oasis Outback.

The complaint accuses the defendants of significant failures and negligence that enabled the gunman to carry out the shooting.

Stephanie Sherman, a Texas-based lawyer for Baum Hedlund, is the lead attorney on the case.

“The horrors of May 24, 2022, were only possible because so many in positions of power were negligent, careless, and reckless,” she said in a statement. “Our clients and the Uvalde community demand accountability for their complete disregard of human life.”

The school shooting killed 19 students and 2 teachers and injured more than a dozen others.