SAN ANTONIO — Four children who survived being shot at Robb Elementary, and their families, are now being represented by the law firm of Thomas J Henry.
The initial lawsuit names the estate of the now dead gunman who killed 19 students and two teachers in Uvalde. But, Henry said as they discover more evidence, they may ask that many more people and groups be held responsible.
"These children are going to forever have this seared into their memory. It's going to be the fabric of their life. And they're going to have issues coping now and in the future," said Henry. "We're doing a lot of things quickly as we speak."
He said his firm is gathering evidence related to many aspects of the Uvalde attack, with a lawsuit asking for an initial judgement of more than $100 million.
"So that we're able to learn, for instance, who knew what, when, where, before the shooting? Was the purchase of this gun even legal? Were the was the ammunition purchase legal?"
Henry said the four young victims he's representing, who are only identified by their initials, are all nine or 10-years-old, and they all suffered one or more gunshot wounds that may have lifelong implications.
Henry said his action is looking at evidence beyond the shooter, like the performance of law enforcement.
"It's just egregious. It's ridiculous. And, you know. That law enforcement agency, the oversight of that agency, you know, how they're handling those officers that failed to respond. There's no doubt that at the most important moment, probably of their entire life, they blew it."
Henry said they're also looking at physical issues, like the school building.
"I think that when it comes to the design of schools, when it comes to the procedures inside of schools, we can see that they were heavily flawed. You ended up with children being locked in a room against their will with no ability to get out, no other exit."
Changes to gun laws, Henry said, also need to be addressed.
"This is a time where we need to make sure that guns don't get into the wrong hands...maybe there's age limits for guns. But we need to have some really aggressive, swift changes."
Henry, whose firm also represented victims of the 2017 Sutherland Springs church attack that left 26 dead, said he expects this to be a long fight for justice, as that case is still being appealed now.
In the interest of transparency, we wanted to make sure you know the law firm of Thomas J. Henry does advertise with KENS 5.