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The Uvalde Independent School District declined to fire school police chief Pete Arredondo (pictured May 24) despite furious parents calling for his termination
The Uvalde school board did not punish the district police chief who refused to send cops into Robb Elementary School while a gunman was shooting kids dead.
During its first board meeting since the May 24 shooting, the Uvalde Independent School District (UCISD) declined to fire school police chief Pete Arredondo on Friday.
Superintendent Hal Harrell told meeting attendees he was ‘eager’ for the several investigations launched into law enforcement’s response to the shooting to ‘run their course,’ The Texas Tribune reported.
Harrell’s remark implied the school could still take disciplinary action against Arredondo, who has been considered a cowardice ‘man in hiding,’ pending the results of the investigations.
He also told concerned parents that students would ‘never’ return to the Texas elementary school where Salvador Ramos, 18, killed 19 students and two teachers, and left an entire community terrified to go to school.
Arredondo, who did not attend the school board meeting, is facing furious backlash for not sending in a team fast enough to end the gunman’s vile rampage.
Parents who tried to rush into the school to rescue their kids have also expressed outrage over being handcuffed and restrained outside while police let Ramos continue to evoke terror inside the building.
The school board held its first meeting Friday (pictured) since Robb Elementary School was attacked by deranged gunman Salvador Ramos. During the meeting, the superintendent revealed students would ‘never’ have to return to the elementary school building
One parent revealed during the school board meeting that her seven-year-old son (not pictured) is now ‘deathly afraid’ to go to school next year. Students are pictured fleeing Robb Elementary School on May 24 following the massacre
Harrell had few updates for those attending Friday’s school board meeting, but told parents his heart goes out to the families of the victims.
He also hailed the slain teachers, who reportedly stood in the line of fire to protect their students, as ‘heroes’.
The superintendent did not address potential punishments for Arredondo, 50, or steps the district would take to improve school safety.
Parent Angela Turner told the newspaper she was disappointed with the board’s decision to keep Arredondo employed and the lack of discussion about safety protocols.
Dawn Pointevent, who also spoke at the meeting, argued that her seven-year-old son is now ‘deathly afraid’ to go to school next year.
The board is scheduled to meet again on June 20. Parents are hopeful the next meeting will better address their concerns.
Uvalde Superintendent Hal Harrell (not pictured) had few updates for those attending Friday’s school board meeting, but told parents his heart goes out to the families of the victims. He also hailed the slain teachers as ‘heroes.’ Law enforcement officers are pictured responding to Robb Elementary on May 24
The superintendent issued the above letter to Uvalde parents earlier this week
Ramos stormed Robb Elementary School on May 24 with an AR-15 gun and fired more than 100 shots, killing 21 people. Seventeen others were injured.
The teen was inside the school building for 77 minutes before police reached the locked door with a key and killed the deranged madman.
Salvador Ramos, 18, (pictured) stormed Robb Elementary School on May 24 with an AR-15 gun and fired more than 100 shots, killing 21 people. The teen was inside the school building for 77 minutes before police reached the locked door with a key and killed him
Steven McCraw, head of the Texas Department of Public Safety, said last week Arredondo, who was the acting incident commander during the massacre, declined to send cops into the building because he believed the shooting had turned into a hostage situation.
McCraw admitted during a press briefing last Friday that waiting to take Ramos down ‘was the wrong decision.’
State Senator Roland Gutierrez, who has publicly criticized law enforcement’s response to the mass shooting, revealed Thursday that Arredondo was not carrying a radio during the shooting and was never informed that children had been calling 911 from inside the building.
‘Uvalde PD was the one receiving the 911 calls for 45 minutes while officers were sitting in a hallway, while 19 officers were sitting in a hallway for 45 minutes,’ Gutierrez said during Thursday’s press briefing.
The legislator said the fact that the calls were going to the city police but were not communicated to Arredondo was a ‘system failure’ and claimed the school police chief was not given all the necessary information when he opted against an immediate confrontation with Ramos.
Authorities have not yet disclosed how Arredondo, a Uvalde local, was communicating with other law enforcement officials at the scene.
This is how the shooting played out over the course of nearly two hours from when Ramos killed his grandmother at home. He arrived at the school at 11.28am and the first 911 calls were made. He then walked unobstructed into the building with his AR-15 and headed towards the classroom. He fought off cops at 11.44am, then was left alone in the room with the victims until around 12.44pm – when SWAT arrived. The incident was declared over at 1.06pm
Community members are seen crying outside a local community center on May 24 after Ramos killed 19 elementary school students and two teachers
Authorities have admitted that waiting to take Ramos down ‘was the wrong decision.’ Law enforcement members are pictured on scene of the massacre on May 24
Arredondo was hired to lead the school district police force, which has a half-dozen officers, in 2020. The force is responsible for providing security at district campuses, staffing sporting events and handling narcotics work.
He graduated from Uvalde’s high school in 1990 and previously worked for the Webb County Sheriff’s Office and the United ISD Police Department.
He has yet to publicly speak about the massacre and stated he wouldn’t release any further information while funerals were still underway.
‘We’re going to be respectful to the families,’ the school police chief told CNN on Wednesday. ‘We’re going to do that eventually. Whenever this is done and the families quit grieving, then we’ll do that obviously.’
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