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

The police chief who reportedly made the decision to not instantly send officers into Robb Elementary College to confront a gunman was elected to Uvalde's City Council just 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 Impartial School District, stopped at the least 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 youngsters weren't underneath an lively risk, Steven McCraw, the director of the Texas Department of Public Security, said Friday. 

“From the benefit of hindsight the place I’m sitting now, after all, it was not the suitable resolution. It was a wrong choice. Interval. There was no excuse for that,” McCraw said at a information convention. “There have been plenty of officers to do what needed to be finished, with one exception, is that the incident commander inside believed he needed extra gear and extra officers to do a tactical breach at that time."

In line with McCraw, Arredondo believed there was no lively risk, so as an alternative of sending officers in, he spent time discovering keys that will let him into the college. Throughout this time, nevertheless, the shooter had unencumbered access to hold out the attack. Nineteen college students and two lecturers had been killed.

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

Arredondo did not immediately return a request for remark by NBC News.

As the community calls for answers and items 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 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 position of chief of police for the Uvalde faculty district, in response to the Uvalde Chief-Information.

The former 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 Leader-Information that he was eager to serve the group, saying he was committed to establishing a robust working relationship with the three officers he can be leading. 

“We wish to make sure that we can be found wherever we're needed,” Arredondo instructed the newspaper.

As Arredondo’s tenure hit two years, his native likability led to a successful bid for a Metropolis Council seat this month. He beat out three different candidates, garnering almost 70 % of the vote in the Could 7 election, reported the Uvalde Chief-News. 

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

“I’m very excited, I'm able to hit the bottom working. I have plenty of ideas, and I definitely have loads of drive,” Arredondo advised the outlet this month.

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

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