Live updates: Texas school shooting leaves 21 dead, renews U.S. gun-control calls

Judge dismisses challenge, opens door to civil actions against gun industryGunmaker acknowledges it made rifle used in ‘evil act’Victim’s father describes hearing gunfire at school, questions police responseGirls basketball team mourns two players killed in shooting‘Second amendment is not absolute,’ Biden saysFather of third-grader at Robb says daughter is traumatizedGunman’s grandmother ‘almost out of surgery,’ his mother saysSupport for stricter gun laws has wavered for three decades, polling showsAt least 17 injured in addition to the deaths, official saysUvalde school police officer ‘engaged’ gunman and was shot, DPS saysFacebook says gunman sent direct messages before shootingSupreme Court to decide whether to expand gun rights to carry in publicThe scene in Uvalde as community members donate bloodInvestigators still exploring gunman’s potential ties to schoolGunman shared on Facebook he would shoot up a school, Gov. Abbott saysJudge dismisses challenge, opens door to civil actions against gun industryGunmaker acknowledges it made rifle used in ‘evil act’Victim’s father describes hearing gunfire at school, questions police responseGirls basketball team mourns two players killed in shooting‘Second amendment is not absolute,’ Biden saysFather of third-grader at Robb says daughter is traumatizedGunman’s grandmother ‘almost out of surgery,’ his mother saysSupport for stricter gun laws has wavered for three decades, polling showsAt least 17 injured in addition to the deaths, official saysUvalde school police officer ‘engaged’ gunman and was shot, DPS saysFacebook says gunman sent direct messages before shootingSupreme Court to decide whether to expand gun rights to carry in publicThe scene in Uvalde as community members donate bloodInvestigators still exploring gunman’s potential ties to schoolGunman shared on Facebook he would shoot up a school, Gov. Abbott saysPresident Biden on Wednesday said the Second Amendment is “not absolute” and said he would visit Texas “in the coming days," as more details emerged on the days and moments leading up to the elementary school massacre that killed 19 children and two teachers and injured 17.The president said “common sense” gun control would not “negatively affect” the Second Amendment, and added that the amendment is “not absolute.”Officials say Salvador Rolando Ramos, 18, bought two rifles and hundreds of rounds and shot his grandmother in the face Tuesday before storming Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Tex. Ramos sent direct messages about his attack on social media shortly before the shooting, according to Facebook; Gov. Greg Abbott said at a news conference Wednesday that Ramos shared his intentions to “shoot my grandmother” and “shoot an elementary school.”The identities of the victims are still emerging. Instead of trying to take firearms away from honest people, we need to put firearms in their hands.”A woman who identified herself as Salvador Ramos’s mother declined to answer questions about her son in a brief phone conversation Wednesday afternoon.“I don’t want to talk about him,” she said.The woman said her mother, Ramos’s grandmother, was “almost out of surgery.”When asked if she was expected to make a full recovery, the woman answered, “I believe so.”She then ended the conversation.“I’m not ready to answer nobody’s questions,” she said, before hanging up.Tuesday’s shooting spurred fresh calls for stricter gun laws from President Biden and other Democrats, as well as renewed frustration with Congress’s lack of action on the issue. A 63 percent majority supported a ban on assault-style weapons, including 83 percent of Democrats and less than half as many Republicans (37 percent).At least 17 people were hurt when the gunman opened fire at the school, in addition to the 19 children and two adults who were killed, Lt. Chris Olivarez, a spokesman for the Texas Department of Public Safety, said Wednesday.The shooter entered the school through a south entrance in the newer part of the building and barricaded himself in a classroom where he shot at students and teachers, Olivarez said in an interview. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) confirmed that at least one officer from the Uvalde school district was at the school, saying the shooter was able to get into the building through “a back door.”DPS Director Steve McCraw said the school officer — who he called “brave” — saw the gunman after he crashed a car near the school.“Gunfire was not exchanged but the subject was able to make it into the school,” McCraw said.Facebook said Wednesday that the gunman in the Texas school shooting sent direct messages about the attack on one of its platforms, something the social media giant learned after the killings.Gov. Greg Abbott (R) said at a news conference that the gunman posted his plans on the social media site before the attack. Herby Ham Activity Center held an emergency drive today from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. local time.Authorities continue investigating several lingering questions related to Tuesday’s massacre at Robb Elementary, including whether the gunman had any ties to the school, a spokesman for the Texas Department of Public Safety said Wednesday.The gunman, Salvador Rolando Ramos, 18, was fatally shot after killing at least 19 children and two adults, and wounding others.Travis Considine, the spokesman, said a Border Patrol tactical team responding to the shooting scene “took care of the suspect,” but added that investigators were exploring whether Ramos may have shot himself.