By Steve Neavling
A Border Patrol tactical unit and other agents responded to the elementary school shooting in Uvalde on Tuesday, and one of the agents shot and killed the suspect.
“Risking their own lives, these Border Patrol Agents and other officers put themselves between the shooter and the children on the scene to draw the shooter’s attention away from potential victims and save live,” Homeland Security spokeswoman Marsha (Catron) Espinosa tweeted.
On- and off-duty agents came under fire from the suspect, who had barricaded himself in the school. The Border Patrol agent who fatally shot the gunman was wounded by gunfire, the Associated Press reports.
About 80 Border Patrol agents were among the first to arrive. Among them was a SWAT-like tactical and counterterrorism unit.
Uvalde is close to the border, and it’s not uncommon for Border Patrol agents to assist local police departments.
