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

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

Peter Arredondo, the chief of police for the Uvalde Consolidated Independent School District, stopped at the very least 19 officers from breaking into the college because the gunman opened fire for not less than an hour.

Arredondo believed that the shooter had barricaded himself and that the children weren't below an active menace, Steven McCraw, the director of the Texas Department of Public Security, mentioned Friday. 

“From the good thing about hindsight where I’m sitting now, in fact, it was not the best choice. It was a wrong resolution. Interval. There was no excuse for that,” McCraw said at a news convention. “There have been loads of officers to do what wanted to be accomplished, with one exception, is that the incident commander inside believed he needed extra tools and extra officers to do a tactical breach at the moment."

In accordance with McCraw, Arredondo believed there was no energetic risk, so as an alternative of sending officers in, he spent time finding keys that might let him into the varsity. During this time, however, the shooter had unencumbered entry to hold out the attack. Nineteen students and two lecturers were killed.

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

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

As the group demands answers and pieces 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 on 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, based on the Uvalde Leader-News.

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

Arredondo instructed the Leader-News that he was eager to serve the group, saying he was dedicated to establishing a powerful working relationship with the three officers he can be leading. 

“We wish to be sure that we can be found wherever we are needed,” Arredondo informed the newspaper.

As Arredondo’s tenure hit two years, his native likability led to a profitable bid for a City Council seat this month. He beat out three other candidates, garnering nearly 70 % of the vote in the May 7 election, reported the Uvalde Leader-News. 

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

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

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

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