Uvalde police chief who delayed officer response to Texas taking pictures to affix City Council

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

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

Arredondo believed that the shooter had barricaded himself and that the children weren't under an lively menace, Steven McCraw, the director of the Texas Division of Public Safety, said Friday. 

“From the benefit of hindsight the place I’m sitting now, after all, it was not the fitting choice. It was a improper determination. Period. There was no excuse for that,” McCraw said at a information convention. “There have been plenty of officers to do what wanted to be accomplished, with one exception, is that the incident commander inside believed he wanted more equipment and more officers to do a tactical breach at that time."

In response to McCraw, Arredondo believed there was no lively menace, so instead of sending officers in, he frolicked discovering keys that might let him into the school. Throughout this time, however, the shooter had unencumbered access to hold out the assault. Nineteen college students and two lecturers were killed.

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

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

As the group demands answers and pieces together a shaky and conflicting timeline of occasions, scrutiny has turned to Arredondo, who was born and raised in Uvalde. 

After working because the police captain on the United Independent School 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 response to the Uvalde Leader-News.

The former 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 informed the Chief-Information that he was wanting to serve the neighborhood, saying he was committed to establishing a strong working relationship with the three officers he would be main. 

“We wish to be sure we are available wherever we are needed,” Arredondo advised 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 within 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 mentioned. 

“I’m very excited, I am able to hit the ground working. I have loads of ideas, and I positively have loads of drive,” Arredondo instructed 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, based mostly in Chicago.