Uvalde police chief who delayed officer response to Texas shooting to join Metropolis Council

The police chief who reportedly made the call not to immediately ship officers into Robb Elementary School to confront a gunman was elected to Uvalde's Metropolis Council just three weeks ago after operating on a platform of communication and outreach to the community. 

Peter Arredondo, the chief of police for the Uvalde Consolidated Impartial College District, stopped a minimum of 19 officers from breaking into the college as the gunman opened hearth for not less than an hour.

Arredondo believed that the shooter had barricaded himself and that the children weren't underneath an active threat, Steven McCraw, the director of the Texas Department of Public Security, stated Friday. 

“From the advantage of hindsight where I’m sitting now, in fact, it was not the suitable choice. It was a unsuitable choice. Interval. There was no excuse for that,” McCraw stated at a news conference. “There have been plenty of officers to do what wanted to be carried out, with one exception, is that the incident commander inside believed he needed extra gear and extra officers to do a tactical breach at the moment."

In keeping with McCraw, Arredondo believed there was no lively threat, so as a substitute of sending officers in, he frolicked finding keys that would let him into the school. Throughout this time, nevertheless, the shooter had unencumbered entry to hold out the assault. Nineteen college students and two academics were killed.

Arredondo was not present amongst regulation enforcement officials standing with McCraw on Friday, and McCraw didn't explicitly title him.

Arredondo did not instantly return a request for comment by NBC News.

Because the group calls for answers and items together a shaky and conflicting timeline of occasions, scrutiny has turned to Arredondo, who was born and raised in Uvalde. 

After working because the police captain on the United Unbiased College 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 college district, according to the Uvalde Chief-Information.

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 advised the Chief-Information that he was desperate to serve the neighborhood, saying he was committed to establishing a powerful working relationship with the three officers he can be main. 

“We want to ensure that we can be found wherever we're needed,” Arredondo informed the newspaper.

As Arredondo’s tenure hit two years, his native likability led to a profitable bid for a City Council seat this month. He beat out three other candidates, garnering practically 70 percent of the vote in the Might 7 election, reported the Uvalde Leader-News. 

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

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

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

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