SANTA FÉ, TX – The Santa Fe Independent School District board voted unanimously to request an external review of the district’s security policies and procedures more than six years after a mass shooting at Santa Fe High School claimed the lives of eight students and two educators. Council members agreed to partner with the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of Community Oriented Policing Services.

This is the same office that led the review of the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde. This is not a criminal investigation into what happened in May 2018, but a review of how the district responded to the mass shooting and the policies and procedures implemented since the murders.

“I want to emphasize that we have spoken to them as a school district about how we can work together in partnership. This is not something we do with the City of Santa Fe, nor with Galveston County, nor with the State of Texas. This is something that Santa Fe ISD is pursuing with this part of the Department of Justice,” board President JR Norman said at the Oct. 15 school board meeting.

Norman added that once the review is complete, the information will be added to ongoing efforts to better protect schools across the country. The COPS office does not have subpoena power and municipalities must request this type of review. DOJ officials previously told KPRC 2 Investigators they are willing to help Santa Fe if asked.

Santa Fe ISD Superintendent Dr. Kevin Bott will now file a formal request with the COPS office and define a scope of work. Once the review is complete, the findings will be made public.

Parents of children killed in the mass shooting have long called for an independent review of what happened in May 2018. Earlier this year, the retired Secret Service agent and former head of security and Texas City ISD Security Officer Mike Matranga has sent a formal request to the Department of Justice. on behalf of several family members of those killed and survivors.

Rosie Stone, Chris Stone’s mother, worries this type of exam won’t answer all the questions she and other parents have had for six years. Several members also repeatedly criticized Gov. Greg Abbott for failing to follow through on a promised third-party independent review of the shooting.

“I just don’t understand our shooting at all. The question remains: why are we so different? Why can’t we have an independent review of the May 18 failures, just like Parkland and Uvalde? Why are we getting a review of what they did going forward? Stone wrote in a statement to KPRC 2. “One thing people need to understand is that they didn’t work on this, it was a few months ago, because I brought to their attention with the help of Mike. If I hadn’t said anything, none of this would have happened. If I wasn’t still seeking justice for my son, they wouldn’t do anything. This was my bottom line, a consideration of the consequences, not the reason my son was left in a body bag. I know who pulled the trigger, but he also benefited from the school district’s negligence.”

School district officials have previously denied there were any missteps in how the district responded the day of the shooting. Board members said the district previously asked the Texas School Safety Center to review its policies and procedures to ensure they were doing everything possible to protect students. The findings of this report have not been made public.

The accused shooter, Dimitrios Pagourtzis, remains incompetent to stand trial.

Several parents of slain children and survivors have sued Pagourtzis’ parents and the online ammunition retailer that sold the accused shooter the ammunition used in the mass shooting. A Galveston County jury did not find that the parents were responsible for what happened, and although the online retailer was found to be partially at fault, no damages could be awarded since the company already settled with the families. The jury found that Pagourtzis himself was largely responsible for the mass shooting.

If you would like to learn more about the Santa Fe school shooting, KPRC 2 Investigates “The Evidence Room, Long Hallway” provides a detailed, personal account of what happened on May 18, 2018.