Texas School Shooting: Mourners gather for first funeral

Hundreds of mourners gathered for Amerie Jo Garza's funeral on May 31. Garza was a 10-year-old fourth-grader who was killed on May 24 when 18-year-old Salvador Ramos stormed Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas and opened fire on her classroom, killing 19 students and 2 teachers. (AP)

Garza’s funeral was the first since the massacre, with Maite Rodriguez’s scheduled for later in the day at an Uvalde funeral home. Pallbearers carry Garza's casket to her burial site. (AP)

Nineteen more funerals are planned for the next two-and-a-half weeks for those who were killed in that classroom a week ago. In this image, the pallbearers are seen preparing to carry Garza's casket to the funeral service at Sacred Heart Catholic Church. (AP)

Uvalde County Justice of the Peace Eulalio “Lalo” Diaz Jr. said the bodies of all 21 victims were first sent to the medical examiner’s office in San Antonio for autopsies, which he said is standard for a major crime. (AP)

Many bodies were sent to out-of-town funeral homes until funeral services came close, because there wasn't enough space available at Uvalde’s two funeral homes. Diaz Jr. added that the Uvalde funeral homes are working with the families on when they can see their loved ones. (AP)

According to Diaz, the autopsies have been completed. However, he declined to discuss preliminary results and said that final reports will take three to four months. (AP)

Meanwhile, investigators continue to seek answers about the police response to the shooting. The US Department of Justice is also reviewing law enforcement actions. (AP)

The blame for the delayed killing of the gunman was placed on the school district’s police chief, Pete Arredondo, after the director of state police said that Arredondo made the “wrong decision” to not enter the classroom, believing the gunman was barricaded inside and children weren’t at risk, even though parents outside begged police to rush in and panicked children called 911 from inside. (AP)

Authorities have said Ramos, the shooter, had legally purchased two guns right before the school attack: an AR-style rifle on May 17 and a second rifle on May 20. He had just turned 18, permitting him to buy the firearms under federal law. (AP)

US President Joe Biden told reporters that he “will meet with the Congress on guns, I promise you,” but the White House has acknowledged that new gun legislation will be an uphill climb in a Congress evenly divided between Democrats and Republicans. (AP)