Uvalde victim's mother recalls last moments with daughter, urges Congress to 'act now' on gun laws
Tearing up, Kimberly Rubio pleaded with lawmakers to not think of her daughter Lexi "as just a number." Lexi, who died in the Uvalde, Texas school shooting, was among 19 children killed.
Kimberly Rubio, whose daughter Lexi died in the Uvalde massacre, described her final moments with her daughter as she and her husband Felix attended an awards ceremony at Robb Elementary School on May 24. Lexi had earned all 'A's and won a "good citizen award."
The Rubios promised to take Lexi out for ice cream that night to celebrate. They parted ways at around 11 a.m., after a picture-taking session.
"I told her we loved her and we would pick her up after school," said Rubio, who testified via video. "I could still see her walking with us towards the exit. In the reel that keeps scrolling across my memories, she turns her head and smiles back at us to acknowledge my promise. And then we left."
"I left my daughter at that school and that decision will haunt me for the rest of my life," Rubio said.
At 11:33 a.m. that same morning, the 18-year-old shooter arrived at Robb Elementary School. Lexi Rubio was among 19 children killed. Two teachers were killed.
Timeline of Uvalde Massacre: How Texas elementary school shooting, deadliest since Sandy Hook, unfolded
Kimberly and Felix Rubio testified about their increasingly desperate search for their daughter that afternoon.
“Bus after bus arrived, but she wasn’t onboard,” Kimberly testified.
She and other family members drove to different hospitals looking for her. “At this point, some part of me must have realized that she was gone,” said Kimberly. Her worst fear was later confirmed.
Tearing up, she pleaded with lawmakers to not “think of Lexi as just a number. She was intelligent, compassionate and athletic. She was quiet and shy unless she had a point to make.”
Closing her testimony, Kimberly said: “Somewhere out there there's a mom listening to our testimony, thinking I can't even imagine their pain. Not knowing our reality will one day be hers, unless we act now.”
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