AUSTIN, TEXAS — Texas House Democrats joined Lives Robbed, a coalition of Uvalde families who lost children in the Robb Elementary School shooting, to condemn the passage of HB 15, legislation that deliberately shields police misconduct from public scrutiny by creating a secretive "department file" system that keeps crucial accountability information hidden from Texans.
The bill allows law enforcement agencies to unilaterally classify misconduct complaints as "unsubstantiated" and hide them in confidential files exempt from requests for information from the public or press. Without crucial changes today, the new system would have allowed the Texas Department of Public Safety to conceal crucial information about officer failures during the Robb Elementary School shooting, where nearly 400 officers waited more than 77 minutes before confronting the shooter who killed 19 children and two teachers.
**Kimberly Mata-Rubio, Lexi’s Mom and Lives Robbed President: **“For over three years, we've tirelessly sought access to records from the Department of Public Safety (DPS) regarding their failure to protect our children at Robb Elementary. Yet, answers remain elusive. HB 15 threatens to permanently deny families the closure and understanding they deserve in the wake of law enforcement related tragedies; the amendments do little to substantially improve our situation. This is a shameful moment in Texas’ history, and we mourn all the victims who will be impacted by this callous decision to value the thin blue line over the people of Texas.”
Texas House of Representatives Speaker pro Tempore Joe Moody: “I’m pleased that we made this bill better than what it started as, but make no mistake—any move towards secrecy is dangerous and undermines public trust. I always go back to the preamble to our Public Information Act: ‘The people … do not give their public servants the right to decide what is good for them to know and what is not good for them to know.’ I believe that, and I join my fellow Texas Democrats in fighting for it.”
Texas House Minority Leader Rep. Gene Wu: “Republicans have created a system that protects officers who've committed misconduct while making it harder for Texans to know if those sworn to protect them have histories of problematic behavior. This corrupt, dangerous legislation undermines the transparency that keeps our communities safe and serves the interests of those with something to hide, not the public.”