Texas Officials Stonewall the Truth on Uvalde Mass Shooting, A National Security Crisis

May 9, 2025

In a Texas courtroom, a judge cut through the government’s evasions with a searing analogy: “It’s like a bad dating relationship. You ask for an answer, and instead of saying ‘no,’ they say, ‘Technically, I didn’t reject you.’”

That line perfectly captures the state’s relentless campaign to keep the most crucial records about the Uvalde school shooting-specifically, the shooter’s school and behavioral health files-hidden from the public.

For more than two years, families, journalists, and the Uvalde community have demanded answers. What warning signs did Salvador Ramos show? Was he ever flagged for mental health intervention or prescribed psychotropic drugs?

Did the system fail him-and, by extension, his 21 victims? Texas agencies, including the Uvalde school district, sheriff’s office, and Department of Public Safety, have done everything possible to keep those answers buried. Even after Judge Sid Harle ordered the release of these records in July 2024, officials still failed to comply. Instead, state officials filed appeals, spinning the process into a bureaucratic purgatory where “technically, we didn’t reject you” still is the only response.

The Texas Public Information Act places the burden on government to prove why records should be withheld. Yet, agencies dodge, delay, and hide behind vague claims that releasing information could disrupt ongoing prosecutions. The city of Uvalde finally released some records under pressure, but the most vital documents-the school and mental health files-remain hidden. Ken Paxton, the Texas Attorney General, who could cut through the red tape, but instead stands by as the stonewalling continues.Media organizations, led by attorneys like Laura Prather, have won court order after court order, only to see the state escalate its legal foot-dragging.

The latest appeals court hearing on March 27, 2025, was just another round in this exhausting fight. Meanwhile, families and the public are left waiting, traumatized not just by the massacre, but by the government’s refusal to come clean.What’s at stake is more than paperwork. These records could expose systemic failures in Texas schools and mental health care, reveal if psychotropic drugs were a factor, and show whether obvious red flags were ignored. The truth could save lives. But as long as Texas officials keep hiding behind “technically, I didn’t reject you,” the cycle of evasion and tragedy will continue. The public deserves real answers-not more bureaucratic games.

As of May 2025, there is no publicly available “Final Report” from the Texas State Police (Texas Department of Public Safety/DPS)