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

The police chief who reportedly made the decision not to immediately send officers into Robb Elementary College 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 group. 

Peter Arredondo, the chief of police for the Uvalde Consolidated Independent School District, stopped no less than 19 officers from breaking into the college because the gunman opened fireplace for no less than an hour.

Arredondo believed that the shooter had barricaded himself and that the children were not below an active threat, Steven McCraw, the director of the Texas Department of Public Safety, stated Friday. 

“From the good thing about hindsight where I’m sitting now, of course, it was not the right decision. It was a unsuitable choice. Interval. There was no excuse for that,” McCraw said at a information convention. “There have been loads of officers to do what needed to be carried out, with one exception, is that the incident commander inside believed he needed extra equipment and extra officers to do a tactical breach at the moment."

Based on McCraw, Arredondo believed there was no active threat, so as a substitute of sending officers in, he frolicked discovering keys that may let him into the college. During this time, nevertheless, the shooter had unencumbered access to carry out the assault. Nineteen college students and two academics were killed.

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

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

Because the neighborhood demands solutions and pieces together a shaky and conflicting timeline of events, scrutiny has turned to Arredondo, who was born and raised in Uvalde. 

After working because the police captain at the United Independent 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 faculty district, according to the Uvalde Chief-Information.

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

Arredondo advised the Chief-News that he was wanting to serve the group, saying he was committed to establishing a strong working relationship with the three officers he could be leading. 

“We want to make certain we can be found wherever we're wanted,” Arredondo informed 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 other candidates, garnering nearly 70 % of the vote within the May 7 election, reported the Uvalde Chief-News. 

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

“I’m very excited, I am ready to hit the ground working. I have loads of concepts, and I definitely have loads of drive,” Arredondo told 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, based mostly in Chicago.