“These families fought for justice, endured and won two trials against the federal government and made this country safer as a result. But the settlement is not final,” Alsaffar said. “Attorney General Garland’s office still must approve it, and we urge his Justice Department to act quickly to bring some closure to these families. It’s the least they deserve.”

In July 2021, a judge found the government partly liable for the shooting for failing to provide records that could have kept Devin Kelley, a former Air Force service member, from acquiring the weapons he used in the shooting at First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs.

The U.S. government was ordered to pay the more than 80 survivors and victims’ relatives $230 million; the Justice Department appealed the ruling. Lawyers for the government argued in court that even if the Air Force — which did not report Kelley’s 2012 arrest and court-martial for domestic violence to the FBI — had followed the law, he would have found another way to acquire a gun to commit the same act, according to court transcripts.

Victims of the shooting said this year that the Justice Department’s arguments had left them frustrated, confused and angry. Many found that the agency’s arguments seemed to undermine the background check system, which was a cornerstone of President Joe Biden’s gun policy priorities.

Survivors and gun safety advocates said they feared that if the Justice Department won the case it could damage gun safety laws.

“If I had an opportunity to meet President Biden, I would ask him, ‘Why? Why are you doing all this [gun reform] and yet you’re fighting it over here?’” said Juan “Gunny” Macias, who was shot numerous times in the attack.

In its statement, the Justice Department emphasized that the background check system “plays a critical role in combatting gun violence” and that the federal government “is always striving to improve the functioning of that system.”