- A federal judge on Wednesday ruled that the US Air Force was largely responsible for the 2017 mass shooting at a Texas church for failing to report the shooter’s criminal history to the FBI.
- The decision concluded that the Air Force was responsible for 60% of the shooting.
- Rodriguez ordered a further court within 15 days to assess the monetary damages due to the survivors and the families of the victims.
A federal judge on Wednesday ruled that the US Air Force was largely responsible for the 2017 mass shooting at a Texas church that killed 26 people for failing to report the shooter’s criminal history to the FBI.
The ruling concluded that the Air Force was responsible for 60% of the shooting, noting that the military branch’s failure to file Devin Patrick Kelley’s domestic violence allegations in a federal database allowed him to purchase a firearm that would otherwise have been prohibited.
Kelley opened fire on worshipers at the First Baptist Church in the city of Sutherland Springs in November 2017, one of the deadliest mass shootings in recent history.
“Had the Government done its job and properly reported Kelley’s information into the background check system—Kelley would likely have been deterred from carrying out the Church shootings,” US District Judge Xavier Rodriguez wrote in the court ruling.
“For this reason, the Government bears significant responsibility for Plaintiffs’ damages.”
An Air Force spokesman did not immediately return CNBC’s request for comment.
Rodriquez noted in the court ruling that no other individual, including Kelley’s parents or spouse, knew as much as the government knew about his violent history and the violence it was capable of committing.
The decision follows a lawsuit filed by the victim’s family against the government. Rodriguez also ordered a further court within 15 days to assess the monetary damages to be paid to the survivors and the families of the victims.
Kelley served at an Air Force base in New Mexico for nearly five years, according to court records. He was tried in a military court in 2012 for assaulting his wife and stepson and was sentenced for bad behavior and one year in prison.
Despite Kelley’s history of violence, he was able to pass mandatory background checks to purchase four different firearms from a licensed firearms dealer after he was fired. Among them was the AR-556 rifle he used in the church shooting, according to the court ruling.
After the shooting, the Air Force publicly acknowledged that it could have prevented Kelley from buying firearms, according to the Associated Press.
Kelley would not pass a background check to buy a firearm if his convictions were entered into the FBI database, the court ruling said. Under the Gun Control Act of 1968, people convicted of petty crimes involving domestic violence are prohibited from possessing firearms.
“USAF agents and leadership have an obligation—and many opportunities—to ensure that Kelley’s fingerprints and criminal history are submitted to the FBI’s Criminal Justice Information Services Division (“CJIS”) for inclusion in its database,” Rodriguez said in the court ruling.
The Texas Supreme Court last month ruled that the shop that sold the rifle used in the shooting to Kelley could not be prosecuted. The victim’s family and survivors have filed a lawsuit against Academy Sports + Outdoors, but the court dismissed it because a background check conducted by the store did not show Kelley’s claim.
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