Uvalde police chief who delayed officer response to Texas shooting to hitch City Council

The police chief who reportedly made the call to not instantly send officers into Robb Elementary School to confront a gunman was elected to Uvalde's City Council simply three weeks ago after running on a platform of communication and outreach to the neighborhood. 

Peter Arredondo, the chief of police for the Uvalde Consolidated Independent School District, stopped at the least 19 officers from breaking into the college as the gunman opened fireplace for at the least an hour.

Arredondo believed that the shooter had barricaded himself and that the youngsters were not underneath an lively threat, Steven McCraw, the director of the Texas Division of Public Safety, stated Friday. 

“From the good thing about hindsight the place I’m sitting now, of course, it was not the right resolution. It was a incorrect determination. Interval. There was no excuse for that,” McCraw mentioned at a information conference. “There have been loads of officers to do what wanted to be executed, with one exception, is that the incident commander inside believed he wanted extra equipment and extra officers to do a tactical breach at the moment."

In accordance with McCraw, Arredondo believed there was no lively risk, so as a substitute of sending officers in, he spent time finding keys that may let him into the varsity. Throughout this time, nonetheless, the shooter had unencumbered access to carry out the attack. Nineteen students and two teachers had been killed.

Arredondo was not current amongst legislation enforcement officials standing with McCraw on Friday, and McCraw didn't explicitly title him.

Arredondo did not immediately return a request for remark by NBC News.

As the neighborhood calls for answers and items collectively a shaky and conflicting timeline of occasions, scrutiny has turned to Arredondo, who was born and raised in Uvalde. 

After working as the police captain at the United Independent Faculty District in Laredo, Texas, about 140 miles south of Uvalde, Arredondo returned to his hometown in April 2020, when he accepted the position of chief of police for the Uvalde faculty district, in line with the Uvalde Chief-News.

The former chief, Leo Flores, resigned after being arrested on expenses of unlawfully carrying a gun in a bar and threatening an officer, the newspaper reported. 

Arredondo advised the Leader-Information that he was wanting to serve the neighborhood, saying he was committed to establishing a powerful working relationship with the three officers he can be leading. 

“We need to be sure we are available wherever we're needed,” Arredondo instructed the newspaper.

As Arredondo’s tenure hit two years, his native likability led to a profitable bid for a Metropolis Council seat this month. He beat out three different candidates, garnering practically 70 percent of the vote in the Could 7 election, reported the Uvalde Chief-Information. 

The chief campaigned, largely door-to-door, on communication and outreach “to those in need,” the newspaper stated. 

“I’m very excited, I am ready to hit the ground running. I have plenty of concepts, and I positively have plenty of drive,” Arredondo advised the outlet this month.

Arredondo is scheduled to be sworn onto the council on Tuesday, precisely one week after the Uvalde shooting.

Safia Samee Ali is a reporter for NBC Information Digital, primarily based in Chicago.