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Pete Arredondo, the incident commander at Robb Elementary School when 19 youngsters and two adults were killed final month, has been placed on administrative leave, Uvalde Independent School District Superintendent Hal Harrell introduced Wednesday.
“From the start of this horrible occasion, I shared that the district would wait till the investigation was full earlier than making personnel selections,” Harrell defined. “Today, I’m nonetheless with out particulars of the investigations being performed by varied businesses. Because of the dearth of readability that continues to be and the unknown timing of when I’ll obtain the outcomes of the investigations, I’ve made the choice to place Chief Arredondo on administrative leave efficient on this date.”
Arredondo has been sharply criticized by everybody from Texas Department of Public Safety Director Steven McCraw to dad and mom within the Uvalde neighborhood for his response to final month’s shooting.
Uvalde School Police Chief Pete Arredondo, third from left, stands throughout a information convention outdoors of the Robb Elementary school in Uvalde, Texas Thursday, May 26, 2022.
(AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills)
Arredondo entered Robb Elementary School only a few minutes after the gunman on May 24, however officers did not breach the classroom and take out the suspect for greater than 70 minutes, a delay that McCraw known as an “abject failure” this week.
UVALDE SHOOTING: TEXAS DPS OFFICIALS BRING ROBB ELEMENTARY SCHOOL DOOR INTO STATE CAPITOL AHEAD OF HEARING
“Three minutes after the suspect entered the west constructing, there was a enough variety of armed officers sporting physique armor to isolate, distract, and neutralize the topic,” McCraw informed a particular Texas Senate committee on Tuesday.
“The solely factor stopping a hallway of devoted officers from getting into Room 111, and 112, was the on-scene commander, who determined to place the lives of officers earlier than the lives of youngsters.”
A ballistic defend and several other officers, together with some with rifles, had been contained in the school inside 20 minutes of the shooting, however Arredondo determined to maintain again and look ahead to extra tactical gear, firepower, and keys to open the door, which wasn’t crucial as a result of the door was unlocked the entire time, in accordance to McCraw.
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Arredondo, in his solely public feedback because the shooting, informed the Texas Tribune that he “didn’t concern any orders” and did not take into account himself the incident commander.
Lieutenant Mike Hernandez, a member of the Uvalde school district’s 6-person police pressure, will assume the duties of the school police chief, the superintendent stated Wednesday.
