Ranger reinstated after Uvalde-related suspension, New Mexico wants Texas' medical workers

AUSTIN (Nexstar) -- The Texas Department of Public Safety reinstated a Texas Ranger in early August after a two year long suspension over his response to the May 2022 Robb Elementary School shooting in Uvalde, Texas.

In May 2022, a lone gunman killed 19 children and two teachers in conjoined classrooms at Robb Elementary in Uvalde. It took 77 minutes for law enforcement officers from dozens of agencies to breach the classroom and take down the 18-year-old gunman. In total, there were 376 law enforcement officers who responded.

DPS Director Steven McCraw informed Texas Ranger Ryan Kindell on Aug. 2 that he would be removed from suspension and allowed to return to his position in Uvalde County, according to documents obtained by Nexstar on Aug. 5. A grand jury in the county determined Kindell did not break protocol or laws in his response to the mass shooting.

McCraw previously told Nexstar that he was waiting on the completion of an internal criminal investigation, as well as the Uvalde County grand jury findings, before making a final decision about Kindell's job status.

"I have decided to alter my preliminary decision based upon a review of the completed Texas Ranger criminal investigation," McCraw wrote. "An internal review of the actions of Texas Department of Public Safety officers who responded to the attack and subsequent to the review by the Uvalde County grand jury of the law enforcement response at Robb Elementary."

In his Friday letter, McCraw noted that Uvalde County District Attorney Christina Mitchell and the grand jury did not find Kindell to have any criminal culpability for his actions during the shooting.

"The Uvalde grand jury reviewed all law enforcement officers who responded to the attack at Robb Elementary and no action was taken on officers employed by the Texas Department of Public Safety. Further, [Mitchell] has requested that you be reinstated to your former position," McCraw wrote.

The DA's findings are consistent with internal records obtained by KXAN in a 2023 investigation, which showed the two highest-ranking Texas Rangers said Kindell should not face repercussions based on his actions that day.

McCraw’s initial determination to terminate Kindell went against the recommendations of the chief and assistant chief of the Texas Rangers who found there is a “lack of evidence” to suggest Kindell should have acted differently on May 24, 2022.

Kindell's attorney declined to comment.

New Mexico launches campaign to recruit Texas medical workers

New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham paid for full-page advertisements to run Sunday in five major newspapers, including the Austin American-Statesman. Those ads included an open letter from the governor, where she framed her pitch around offering a different political environment for Texas medical workers.

"I know that legal restrictions on healthcare in Texas have created a heavy burden for medical practitioners — especially those of you now barred by law from providing the full spectrum of reproductive healthcare," Grisham's letter read. "It must be distressing that a draconian abortion ban has restricted your right to practice and turned it into a political weapon."

The ads also feature a link to a "Free to Provide" state website where approximately 120 medical providers in New Mexico have now posted openings for positions that range broadly from nurses to doctors. State leaders told KXAN they'll circle back with these providers as early as next week to see whether New Mexico's campaign led to an increase in applicants.

"I certainly respect those of you who remain committed to caring for patients in Texas, but I also invite those of you who can no longer tolerate these restrictions to consider practicing next door in New Mexico," Grisham wrote. "We're fiercely committed to protecting medical freedoms here and we're taking steps to ensure that what happened in Texas never happens in New Mexico."

The state is spending about $400,000 to run this monthlong campaign, which also features a series of six billboards placed around Houston hospitals to encourage workers there to consider relocating to New Mexico.

"We're providing a lot of health care to Texans right now, and we didn't create the legal or political dynamic that Texas has created," said Patrick Allen, cabinet secretary for the New Mexico Department of Health. "Every state out there is looking for providers, taking advantage of every opportunity that it has where it thinks it has a competitive advantage over another state, and I can't see why on earth we wouldn't take advantage of the decisions Texas has made so far."

Andrew Mahaleris, press secretary for Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, slammed the effort Monday. He also included a link to a June study from the University of New Mexico showing the state's population growth is projected to remain flat and get increasingly older.

"People and businesses vote with their feet, and continually they are choosing to move to Texas more than any other state in the country. Governor Lujan Grisham should focus on her state's rapidly declining population instead of political stunts," Mahaleris said.

However, Dr. Tina Philip, president of the Travis County Medical Society, called New Mexico's campaign a "bold move" that some physicians may seriously consider.

"Is there a moment where you think, well, maybe this could be a possibility? Sure," Philip said. "But I think ultimately, most of us, we live here for a reason. We are committed to being in Texas — whether it's family or we've grown up here or we moved here and we love it. It would be great if we felt that we could practice medicine without interference, but ultimately, I think most people are committed to being in Texas."

'Extremely violent and scary:' St. David's surveillance video shows ER crash

"It looks like it felt," Levi Bernard said. "It was really, really, extremely violent and scary."

Six months after a drunk driver sped into St. David's North Austin Medical Center, newly obtained surveillance footage shows how it all unfolded.

The Bernard family says it's important for the public, and policymakers, to see what happened – especially as Austin leaders, other cities, and at least one state senator, consider new hospital safety laws following a KXAN investigation. Congressman Lloyd Doggett, D-Austin, is even asking for a bollard review of all federal facilities in the southwestern U.S.

"We're still very grateful to be alive," said Nadia, Levi's wife, who is still recovering. "We're doing better. It's a slow progress."

In a statement, St. David's asked KXAN not to air the videos, even with faces blurred, citing concerns over "the privacy of our patients and employees." A city attorney who released the videos said it is evidence, and now public information, in a closed police case. KXAN editors ensured any identities beyond the Bernard family have been concealed.

The footage shows a white Acura sedan arriving to the hospital around 4:55 p.m. on Feb. 13 – more than 30 minutes before the deadly crash. At 5:34 p.m., video shows the car speeding toward the hospital ER doors. Inside, more than a dozen people are in the lobby waiting room, including all four members of the Bernard family.

The surveillance video shows just how close other patients came to being run over, including one person who jumped out of the way at the last second. Nadia and Levi were standing next to a large aquarium at the time with their two toddlers, whose faces were pressed up against the glass to get a closer look at the fish. In an instant, the car smashes into them, sending water, glass and debris flying everywhere. The car stopped when it crashed into a wall at the registration desk.

The driver, Michelle Holloway, had a blood alcohol level three to four times the legal limit to drive, toxicology results found. She never let off the gas as the car increased speed from 15 to 47 miles per hour, a police investigation found.

KXAN attempted to reach members of Holloway's family but were unsuccessful.

The footage is now evidence in a $1 million lawsuit against St. David's alleging "gross negligence" for not having security bollards at the time – a security feature in place at its other hospitals. St. David's North Austin Medical Center installed a dozen bollards after the crash.

"Why they waited until afterwards is a question only St. David's will be able to answer. And we are going to get that answer," said the Bernard family's attorney Sean Breen, with the Austin law firm Howry Breen & Herman. "It is a 100% engineering probability that bollards would have stopped this car, and nobody would have been hurt."

Concern grows about using AI technology in political ads

The Federal Communications Commission is rushing to finalize a rule mandating TV and radio advertisers disclose when they’re using AI technology in political ads.

Groups like Public Citizen, which has been pushing AI guardrails, praised the FCC’s action but admit it’s unlikely the rule will pass before the November election.

"So, it's entirely possible that we are going to have late breaking deep fakes that show a candidate drunk or saying something racist or behaving in outrageous ways when they've never said any of those things,” says Public Citizen President Robert Weissman.

Nearly two dozen states already passed bills to clamp down on AI generated images and "Big Tech" CEOs have promised to remove or label deep fake content posted on their platforms.

However, federal legislation remains stalled. Before leaving for recess, Senate Republicans blocked two bipartisan bills, one to ban deep fake political ads and another to require labels on AI-generated ads.

On the floor, Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) argued it would be outrageous to allow the technology to go unchecked this close to an election. She says Elon Musk’s decision to retweet an AI-generated parody video that impersonates the voice of Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris underscores the problem.

Musk did not include a note labeling the video as AI generated. He argues that because the video was a parody, it did not need a label.

Klobuchar promised to try and pass both bills again once lawmakers return from recess in the fall.