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

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

Peter Arredondo, the chief of police for the Uvalde Consolidated Independent Faculty District, stopped at least 19 officers from breaking into the school as the gunman opened fire for a minimum of an hour.

Arredondo believed that the shooter had barricaded himself and that the youngsters weren't underneath an active risk, Steven McCraw, the director of the Texas Department of Public Safety, said Friday. 

“From the benefit of hindsight where I’m sitting now, of course, it was not the appropriate decision. It was a unsuitable resolution. Period. There was no excuse for that,” McCraw said at a information conference. “There have been plenty of officers to do what wanted to be performed, with one exception, is that the incident commander inside believed he needed more tools and extra officers to do a tactical breach at the moment."

In line with McCraw, Arredondo believed there was no active risk, so instead of sending officers in, he frolicked finding keys that would let him into the college. During this time, however, the shooter had unencumbered access to hold out the attack. Nineteen college students and two lecturers have been killed.

Arredondo was not present among regulation enforcement officials standing with McCraw on Friday, and McCraw did not explicitly identify him.

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

As the neighborhood demands solutions and items collectively 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 at 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 position of chief of police for the Uvalde faculty district, in line with the Uvalde Chief-News.

The previous 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 Leader-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 need to make sure that we are available wherever we're needed,” Arredondo informed the newspaper.

As Arredondo’s tenure hit two years, his local likability led to a profitable bid for a City Council seat this month. He beat out three different candidates, garnering nearly 70 p.c of the vote in the May 7 election, reported the Uvalde Chief-Information. 

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 ground working. I have plenty of ideas, and I undoubtedly have loads of drive,” Arredondo informed 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, primarily based in Chicago.