Uvalde police chief who delayed officer response to Texas capturing to affix Metropolis Council

The police chief who reportedly made the decision not to immediately send officers into Robb Elementary School to confront a gunman was elected to Uvalde's Metropolis Council just three weeks ago after working on a platform of communication and outreach to the neighborhood. 

Peter Arredondo, the chief of police for the Uvalde Consolidated Impartial Faculty District, stopped no less than 19 officers from breaking into the varsity because the gunman opened fire for at the least an hour.

Arredondo believed that the shooter had barricaded himself and that the kids were not underneath an active risk, Steven McCraw, the director of the Texas Department of Public Security, stated Friday. 

“From the advantage of hindsight where I’m sitting now, in fact, it was not the suitable choice. It was a fallacious resolution. Interval. There was no excuse for that,” McCraw mentioned at a information conference. “There were loads of officers to do what wanted to be accomplished, with one exception, is that the incident commander inside believed he wanted extra tools and extra officers to do a tactical breach at that time."

In line with McCraw, Arredondo believed there was no active threat, so as an alternative of sending officers in, he hung out discovering keys that may let him into the school. During this time, nonetheless, the shooter had unencumbered access to carry out the assault. Nineteen students and two academics had been killed.

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

Arredondo didn't immediately return a request for comment by NBC News.

Because the community demands solutions and items together 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 on the United Impartial College District in Laredo, Texas, about 140 miles south of Uvalde, Arredondo returned to his hometown in April 2020, when he accepted the place of chief of police for the Uvalde college district, in keeping with the Uvalde Chief-News.

The previous 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 Chief-News that he was eager to serve the group, saying he was committed to establishing a strong working relationship with the three officers he would be main. 

“We need to make sure we can be found wherever we are 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 nearly 70 p.c of the vote in the May 7 election, reported the Uvalde Leader-Information. 

The chief campaigned, largely door-to-door, on communication and outreach “to these in want,” the newspaper said. 

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

Arredondo is scheduled to be sworn onto the council on Tuesday, exactly one week after the Uvalde taking pictures.

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