UVALDE, Texas – The Uvalde police chief who is accused of delaying officers’ response in confronting the gunman in Robb Elementary School during a mass shooting was elected earlier this month to a city council position.
Police Chief for the Uvalde Consolidated Independent School District Peter Arredondo was the commander at the scene on Tuesday and prevented 19 officers from going into the school, as the gunman opened fire for at least an hour inside, according to the Director of Texas Department of Public Safety Steven McCraw.
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McCraw said Arredondo believed the shooter was barricaded inside the classrooms and that children were not at risk, though it was the wrong call. The gunman’s massacre resulted in the deaths of 19 students and two schoolteachers.
According to a report from the Uvalde Leader-News, Uvalde voters “overwhelmingly” chose on May 7 to elect Arredondo as the District 3 city councilman.
There were 182 total votes cast, and Arredondo collected nearly 70% of the vote, topping the other two candidates.
Arredondo has served as the UCISD chief of police since March 2, 2020, according to ULN. After winning the election, he said he was eager to “hit the ground running.”
“I’m very excited, I am ready to hit the ground running. I have plenty of ideas, and I definitely have plenty of drive,” Arredondo told the ULN. “I’m in public service and law enforcement, but I’m very proud of my finance background and what I’ve done with budgets. I’m hoping to lend a hand with that and target, you know, smart spending, make sure that we’re fiscally responsible and get some projects done...”
Arredondo is set to be sworn in exactly one week after the shooting, on Tuesday, May 31.