Police have identified all the victims of the Texas elementary school shooting that left 19 students and two teachers dead. Among the dead is a hero 10-year-old girl who was shot in her head when she tried to call 911. Amerie Jo Garza, a fourth-grader at Robb Elementary in Uvalde, Texas, was shot and killed in cold blood by Salvador Ramos, her relatives said.
Amerie's devastated family said that she was a brilliant student and a "sweet girl" and they still can't believe that she is dead and gone. However, they also feel proud thinking that despite the terror inside the school, Amerie didn't get nervous and tried to make a desperate 911 call.
Hero Student
Amerie, a fourth-grader at the Texas elementary school, made a last-ditch effort to grab the phone and make a desperate 911 call in order to save herself and the other helpless students. However, had just made the call when Ramos, the 18-year-old "loner", who marched into the school with a handgun and a rifle, fired at her, killing her instantly.
Berlinda Irene Arreola, Amerie's grandmother, said that Ramos entered the classroom with two guns and shouted, "You're going to die," before starting the carnage, with several bullets hitting her granddaughter as she tried to grab the phone and call 911.
"Instead of grabbing it and breaking it or taking it from her, he shot her. She was sitting right next to her best friend. Her best friend was covered in her blood," the heartbroken grandmother told the Daily Beast.
"She died a hero trying to get help for her and her fellow classmates," said the grieving grandmother.
Two boys, Xavier Lopez, 10, and nine-year-old Uziyah Garcia, were also killed in the incident, as were three more girls, Makenna Elrod, 10, Eliahana Torres, also 10, and Ellie, whose age and surname were not immediately known.
The two teachers who were shot and died were Eva Mireles, 44, and Irma Garcia, a mother of four.
Killed Mercilessly
Ramos killed at least 19 children and two instructors, making it the bloodiest school shooting in US history since the 2012 Sandy Hook massacre, which killed 26 children. According to hospital officials, another 15 children and four adults were injured in the massacre.
The exact motive behind the shoot is still unclear but according to reports and preliminary investigations, Ramos had a troubled past.
Ramos had few friends at Uvalde High School and was a "bullied student," his classmates reportedly said. According to the Washington Post, his lisp made him a target of big bullies in his schools.
Ramos' classmates claimed that he was subjected to homophobic slurs because of his speech problem, while many claimed that he was teased because of his dress sense.
Ramos seemed to have been angry with himself and the way he was treated by other. That was one reason he was "aggressive", according to one of his former co-workers.
Also, there are reports that Ramos failed his graduation just a day before carrying out the shooting. According to a neighbor, who spoke to local news channel Newsy, Ramos, who worked at a Wendy's, was seen shouting with his grandmother, alleging that he was "angry that he did not graduate."
The neighbor said that he then heard his grandmother's screams. "He shot me, he shot me", before Ramos "zoomed down the street" in his pickup before crashing it outside Robb Elementary School.
He then went inside and started shooting the children and everyone else who was within his sight.
Ramos was finally shot dead on the scene by a hero Border Patrol agent who ran into the school with a tactical support team and killed him while he was barricaded inside and was exchanging gunfire with other police officers.
According to police sources, one of the guns Ramos legitimately purchased was discovered next to his body in the school, while another was discovered in a truck he crashed nearby.
A rucksack stuffed with loaded magazines was found abandoned on the way into the school, while seven 30-round magazines were found inside the grounds. It wasn't clear whether they were full or empty right away. Ramos was discovered wearing a body armor vest with no armor plating inside, according to authorities.
