Updated at 1:20 p.m. with information about Hollis Daniels III's confession.

AUSTIN — The Texas Democratic Party has apologized for linking the fatal shooting of a campus police officer on Monday to the state's new law allowing concealed carry at colleges and universities.

In a statement, Deputy Executive Director Manny Garcia expressed remorse for the party's Monday night tweet, which said "allowing concealed guns on colleges campuses was a dumb and dangerous idea." The tweet was deleted Tuesday.

"America lost yet another soul to gun violence last night, Texas Tech University police Officer Floyd East Jr. We pray for him, his family, and the entire Texas Tech community," Garcia said. "In response, we spoke out on Twitter about the danger of campus carry. Our words were inadequate, hurried, and we apologize."

Hollis Daniels III, the 19-year-old freshman arrested in the shooting, could legally possess a pistol under Texas gun laws. But under campus carry, he would still be prohibited from carrying a concealed handgun into campus buildings or Texas Tech dorm rooms because of his age.

Campus carry allows licensed gun owners over the age of 21 to carry handguns, which must remain concealed, into pre-approved areas on campus. Prohibited areas vary by campus, and Texas Tech bars licensed students from carrying guns into gyms and fitness centers, sporting events, disciplinary hearings and some dormitories.

Concealed handguns can be carried in public, outdoor areas on all public college campuses, as well as in many buildings, including dormitories. A handful of campuses in the University of Texas system have barred guns in some offices.

The campus carry law went into effect at four-year public universities on Aug. 1, 2016 — the 50th anniversary of the day U.S. Marine sniper Charles Whitman gunned down 14 people from the iconic tower on the University of Texas at Austin campus. It took effect at two-year schools in August of this year.

Open carry of any firearm is illegal at Texas' public schools, and private universities are not subject to the law's regulations.

It's still unclear where Daniels, the son of a former Seguin city councilman, got the gun police say he used. Campus police went to his room Monday night to perform a welfare check and found evidence of drugs and drug paraphernalia.

He was then brought to the campus police station, where he is alleged to have been the one who shot East in the head, killing him. Daniels fled, and the campus was briefly shut down before he was captured and arrested.

Daniels has admitted to the shooting, according to an affidavit in which he told police he did "something illogical." He is charged with capital murder of a peace officer and is being held in lieu of $5 million bail.

1 / 2Hollis Daniels III(Lubbock County Sheriff's Office) 2 / 2In a photo provided by Texas Tech University, Hollis Daniels, 19. The college freshman shot and killed a campus police officer at Texas Tech University in Lubbock on the night of Oct. 9, 2017, after the student was taken to the university police station for questioning in a drug-related case, the authorities said. (Texas Tech University)(TEXAS TECH UNIVERSITY)

Garcia acknowledged that Daniels would be ineligible to carry a concealed handgun under the campus carry law, adding that Democrats are "frustrated" over the gun control debate: "We're tired of hearing 'thoughts and prayers' from politicians who avoid conversations about real solutions to our nation's gun violence epidemic. We're tired of politicians shrugging tragedy off. We're tired of seeing Americans die.

"We believe law enforcement officials should be the only ones with firearms on campus."

Democrats in Texas widely criticized the campus carry law when it was passed in 2015. They said allowing guns at Texas colleges and universities would put students, staff and educators at risk. Police chiefs also weighed in, saying it would be harder to identify criminals if campus carry and open carry laws were loosened.

In 2016, students at UT-Austin protested the new law using sex toys, and that same year, a handful of professors at the school sued to block the law's implementation, saying it would stifle the free flow of ideas in their classrooms. That lawsuit was tossed in July.

Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, tweeted last week that "the dire consequences" predicted from campus carry "never happened." In a statement sent Tuesday to The Dallas Morning News, Abbott's campaign spokesman said the governor would not politicize East's death.

"An honorable police officer lost his life last night," John Wittman said. "We're not going to use this opportunity to dignify horrific attempts to score cheap political points."