DALLAS — Dallas Police Chief Eddie Garcia called Saturday's shooting at Dallas Methodist Hospital "an abhorrent failure of our criminal justice system."
His reaction was just one of many emotional responses to the shooting, in which two people were killed.
The two victims were publicly identified on Monday as social worker Jacqueline Pokuaa, 45, and nurse Annette Flowers, 63.
Questions continue to surround the deadly incident as the suspect, 30-year-old Nestor Hernandez, had been out on parole and was wearing an ankle monitor at the time of the shooting.
Hernandez was released on parole following an eight-year aggravated robbery sentence in 2015, according to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Sources confirmed to WFAA that Hernandez had also been arrested twice in 2022 while out on parole.
The TDCJ said the 30-year-old was "granted permission to be at the hospital with his significant other during delivery [of their child]."
On Monday, Garcia voiced his frustration with Hernandez's ability to be at the hospital in the first place.
"On Saturday, we lost two health care workers who were going about their day caring for others. But I have stated publicly before and I know you're going to ask it for my opinions, this is a failure of our criminal justice system," Garcia said during a Monday news conference. "A violent individual such as this should not have been on an ankle monitor and should have remained in custody. Hernandez has a criminal history including aggravated assault of a public servant, burglary of habitation and aggravated robbery."
Dallas County District Attorney John Creuzot said in a statement that he is "sickened, stunned and heartbroken by the senseless shooting at Methodist Hospital."
He also added that parole decisions are made by the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles, and not by the District Attorney's office or the county.
"A criminal case has not yet been filed with our office," Creuzot said. "Once the investigating agency completes its investigation and files a case with our office, my team will work to see that justice is done. I share our community's heartache, anger, and shock for this loss of life."
Texas state Rep. Rafael Anchia offered his thoughts and criticized the state's parole board.
"We are devastated that these beautiful healthcare workers were murdered at Methodist Hospital in the heart of our community. The murderer was released in 2021 with only an ankle monitor by Greg Abbott’s Board of Pardons & Parole," Anchia said on Twitter.
Anchia said his office will be calling for an investigation into the state parole board regarding the appointees, funding and ankle monitor supervision.
Former Dallas County prosecutor Toby Shook says the 2015 crime should have had a minimum sentence of 25 years because of Hernandez's criminal history, and that the plea agreement for eight years doesn't make sense.
“Why they did that isn’t clear, but that clearly gave him an avenue to get out of prison early -- and, with his violent history, that’s a very dangerous thing for the public," Shook said. “It’s not that complicated. You have a violent offender who has a long history of violence. Using your common sense, he’s going to commit more violent crimes.”
During an early voting event, Beto O'Rourke, Democratic candidate for Texas governor, told WFAA his thoughts on the state parole board.
"For anyone who poses a threat to anybody in Texas, I want to make sure that they stay behind bars, that be prioritize public safety, protect our families, especially our kids, those caregivers that we just lost in the DFW area, and that we do far better by and for one another," O'Rourke said.
WFAA has reached out to Gov. Greg Abbott for comment on the hospital shooting, but has not heard back.
The DFW Hospital Council said a moment of silence will be observed at North Texas hospitals on Wednesday, Oct. 26, to honor Pokuaa and Flowers. It will occur from 12 p.m. to 12:01 p.m.
“This is our way of offering our prayers and condolences to the two healthcare employees who tragically lost their lives as well as to their families and fellow employees,” said Stephen Love, president/CEO of the hospital council. “It’s also an opportunity to create awareness of the increasing workplace violence at our hospitals. Our healthcare workforce has been dealing with this dangerous increase for a very long time.”
Pokuaa earned a masters degree in social work at the University of Texas at Arlington. The university's presidents mourned the school's loss.
"We lost a valued member of the Maverick family in a senseless tragedy that took place at Methodist Dallas Medical Center over the weekend," UTA President Jennifer Cowley said in a statement on Twitter. "... Please join me in sending our sincerest condolences to Jacqueline's family, friends and loved ones, as well as her classmates and professors in our school of social work."
Both the Texas Nurses Association and National Nurses United organizations offered their condolences to the victims and their families, saying that no one should fear for their life at work.
“Our hearts are broken,” said Dr. Serena Bumpus, CEO of the Texas Nurses Association. “These are our colleagues and friends. The entire TNA family grieves this loss and we extend our condolences to the families and coworkers of the victims.”
“This is unacceptable,” said Bumpus. “No person should fear for their life for merely going to work, especially a nurse or healthcare worker whose passion is to help others heal. We hope our legislators understand that we need to protect our healthcare workers.”
In a statement, the National Nurses United (NNU) organization said there's a need to pass workplace violence prevention legislation in the U.S. Senate.
“We mourn the devastating loss of a nurse and a health care worker and offer our deepest condolences to their families and colleagues at Methodist Dallas Medical Center,” said NNU President Jean Ross. “No one should lose their life because they went to work. Health care settings should be places of healing, not harm. This unimaginable tragedy is a stark reminder that workplace violence in the health care industry is increasing and that we urgently need legislative action to ensure the safety of our caregivers, other health care staff, and every patient or family member in those facilities.”
According to the NNU, a survey of over 2,500 hospital nurses found that reports of increases in workplace violence have more than doubled in the past year.