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

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

Peter Arredondo, the chief of police for the Uvalde Consolidated Impartial College District, stopped no less than 19 officers from breaking into the varsity because the gunman opened hearth for a minimum of an hour.

Arredondo believed that the shooter had barricaded himself and that the kids were not under an active threat, Steven McCraw, the director of the Texas Division of Public Security, said Friday. 

“From the advantage of hindsight where I’m sitting now, of course, it was not the suitable decision. It was a fallacious decision. Period. There was no excuse for that,” McCraw stated at a news convention. “There were plenty of officers to do what wanted to be performed, with one exception, is that the incident commander inside believed he wanted extra tools and more officers to do a tactical breach at the moment."

In response to McCraw, Arredondo believed there was no energetic menace, so instead of sending officers in, he frolicked finding keys that would let him into the college. During this time, nevertheless, the shooter had unencumbered entry to hold out the assault. Nineteen college students and two academics had been killed.

Arredondo was not current among legislation enforcement officers standing with McCraw on Friday, and McCraw did not explicitly identify him.

Arredondo didn't instantly return a request for comment by NBC Information.

Because the community calls for answers and items 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 Unbiased Faculty 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 school district, in keeping with the Uvalde Leader-News.

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

Arredondo told the Leader-Information that he was desirous to serve the group, saying he was dedicated to establishing a powerful working relationship with the three officers he would be leading. 

“We need to make sure that we can be found wherever we are wanted,” Arredondo advised the newspaper.

As Arredondo’s tenure hit two years, his native likability led to a successful bid for a City Council seat this month. He beat out three other candidates, garnering practically 70 % 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 want,” the newspaper said. 

“I’m very excited, I am able to hit the bottom working. I've plenty of ideas, and I undoubtedly have loads 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 capturing.

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