Shooting response under scrutiny as Biden plans visit

Investigators on Thursday afternoon will interview the school resource officer who was cited in early reports as the member of law enforcement who first made contact with the shooter, according to an official with the Texas Department of Public Safety.

The chain of events around which members of law enforcement first engaged the shooter remains unclear; meanwhile, questions are growing over the decision-making by the law enforcement personnel who responded to the school. Parents and witnesses were seen in a video gathered outside the school after reports of an active shooter, frustrated by the police response.

Lt. Chris Olivarez with the Texas Department of Public Safety told The Post on Thursday that officials first received a report that the school resource officer had shot the gunman but are not so sure now and will seek to establish his movements when they interview him.

“What we’re trying to establish now is what exactly was that school resource officer’s role — how did he respond? Where was he responding? Where did he actually see the shooter?” Olivarez said.

Responding to claims that the officer’s account of events has shifted, Olivarez said an officer “may say something at that particular instance but the next day, when they’re able to have time to reflect and gather their thoughts, that’s when we can interview them and establish what actually took place.”

Olivarez said investigators have not confirmed whether officers were waiting outside the school but that those who arrived at the scene did “make entry.”

“In any active-shooter situation, the protocol is to address the threat,” he said.

A tactical team comprising multiple agencies, including U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents, a deputy from neighboring Zavala County and local police, arrived after the first officers entered the campus, he said.