Family who lost 9 people in Sutherland Springs shooting files federal claim against Air Force

Joe Holcombe holds photos of his family Tuesday, Nov. 28, 2017 showing some of the people killed in the Sutherland Springs First Baptist Church shooting. Holcombe and his wife, Claryce, filed an administrative claim against the federal government Tuesday. An administrative claim in the first step before someone can file a lawsuit against the government. less Joe Holcombe holds photos of his family Tuesday, Nov. 28, 2017 showing some of the people killed in the Sutherland Springs First Baptist Church shooting. Holcombe and his wife, Claryce, filed an administrative ... more Photo: William Luther, Staff / San Antonio Express-News Photo: William Luther, Staff / San Antonio Express-News Image 1 of / 47 Caption Close Family who lost 9 people in Sutherland Springs shooting files federal claim against Air Force 1 / 47 Back to Gallery

The Air Force failed numerous times to take steps that would have prevented Sutherland Springs shooter Devin Patrick Kelley from purchasing the firearm he used to kill 26 people and wound 20 others, according to a claim filed by the Holcombe family, which lost 9 members in the massacre.

The claim, filed against the U.S. government Tuesday specifically in the death of Bryan Holcombe, could be the first step to an eventual lawsuit if the Air Force denies responsibility.

The family is seeking monetary damages but said they are also hoping to prevent the type of error that allowed Kelley to purchase the tools he needed to carry out the deadliest mass shooting in Texas history.

READ MORE: Air Force admits it failed to send Sutherland Springs gunman's records to feds

"Although the shooter undoubtedly 'pulled the trigger' that resulted in the injuries and death of JB Holcombe and others, failures of the US Air Force, and others, allowed the shooter to purchase, own and/or possess the semiautomatic rifle, ammunition and body armor he used, and it is these failures that were a proximate cause, in whole or in part, of the injuries and death of the decedent," reads the claim.

Remembering Nov. 5

Joe “Papa Joe” Holcombe joined Houston-based attorney Rob Ammons in downtown San Antonio Tuesday afternoon to discuss his claim and tell the story of his nine family members who lost their lives on Nov. 5.

He said he returned home from teaching Sunday School at the First Baptist Church in Floresville to do what he and his wife always did those days — each lunch and watch church services streamed from San Antonio.

The 86-year-old said he noticed his pastor walking up to the house and thought, "What in the world is he doing here?"

It was about an hour after the shooting and the pastor arrived to deliver the terrible news.

"I said, 'How about my family?'" Holcombe recalled. "'Bryan?'"

He's gone, the pastor said.

John?

He was wounded.

Karla?

She's gone.

"How many are gone?" Holcombe finally asked. And then the pastor named them all.

"That's what hit me the hardest," Holcombe said.

RELATED: Handwritten lawsuit on behalf of Devin Kelley's family appears to be work of Ohio inmate

The family's patriarch lost his son Bryan, daughter-in-law Karla, grandson Marc, granddaughter-in-law Crystal, and great-grandchildren Noah, Emily, Gregory, Megan and an unborn child who was to be named Carlin Brite "Billy Bob" Holcombe.

Kelley's history

The Air Force found through an internal investigation that it failed to report Kelley's 2012 conviction for spousal and child abuse to the FBI’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System.

If the agency had followed through on its reporting requirement, that conviction would have followed him and prevented him from purchasing firearms. Instead, he bought four in Colorado and Texas between 2014 and 2017, including the rifle used in Sutherland Springs.

Because of his abuse convictions, Kelley received a bad-conduct discharge from the Air Force.

The claim also cites threats Kelley made against his superior officers and his attempts to smuggle guns onto base, which landed him in a mental health facility in New Mexico. He escaped that facility and was later apprehended by law enforcement.

Ammons said Kelley's case and the Air Force's error is not uncommon, citing a February 2015 Air Force which report found 30 percent of servicemen convicted of crimes were not reported to the FBI's National Instant Criminal Background Check System.

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“By failing to report, the Air Force is basically shredding gigantic holes in the safety net that is there to protect all of us in society,” Ammons said. “It’s time that this ends and it’s time that this problem is corrected.”

The Air Force admits failures

Coincidentally, the Air Force on Tuesday released the results of a review into Kelley's case it launched immediately after the shooting.

They found similar reporting lapses at other locations.

In a statement the Air Force also said it was implementing a number of corrective measures to ensure reporting compliance.

Air Force officials have not yet responded to Holcombe's claim.

Holcombe, a devout Christian, said he believes his lost loved ones are in a better place. And someday soon, he’ll get to join them.

“They’re just in a much better place now because it’s never going to happen to ‘em again,” he said.

Staff writers Guillermo Contreras, Sig Christenson and John Tedesco contributed to this report. | Kelsey Bradshaw is a digital reporter for mySA.com. Read more of her stories here.| kbradshaw@express-news.net | Twitter: @Kbrad5