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

The police chief who reportedly made the call not to immediately ship officers into Robb Elementary Faculty to confront a gunman was elected to Uvalde's Metropolis Council just three weeks ago after working 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 school as the gunman opened fireplace for no less than an hour.

Arredondo believed that the shooter had barricaded himself and that the kids weren't below an energetic risk, Steven McCraw, the director of the Texas Department of Public Safety, mentioned Friday. 

“From the benefit of hindsight the place I’m sitting now, after all, it was not the best resolution. It was a fallacious determination. Period. There was no excuse for that,” McCraw stated at a information conference. “There were plenty of officers to do what needed to be accomplished, with one exception, is that the incident commander inside believed he needed more equipment and more officers to do a tactical breach at that time."

Based on McCraw, Arredondo believed there was no energetic menace, so as an alternative of sending officers in, he frolicked finding keys that might let him into the varsity. During this time, nonetheless, the shooter had unencumbered entry to carry out the assault. Nineteen college students and two academics had been killed.

Arredondo was not present amongst law enforcement officers standing with McCraw on Friday, and McCraw did not explicitly identify him.

Arredondo didn't instantly return a request for remark by NBC News.

Because the community demands answers and pieces together a shaky and conflicting timeline of events, 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 place of chief of police for the Uvalde school 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 advised the Leader-News that he was wanting to serve the neighborhood, saying he was committed to establishing a robust working relationship with the three officers he would be main. 

“We wish to make sure we can be found wherever we are wanted,” Arredondo instructed 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 within the Might 7 election, reported the Uvalde Leader-Information. 

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

“I’m very excited, I'm ready to hit the bottom operating. I have loads of ideas, and I positively have loads of drive,” Arredondo advised the outlet this month.

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

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