Former Uvalde schools police chief who asked for charges to be dropped returns to court

Uvalde, Texas (AP) — The former school police chief of Uvalde, Texas, is expected to be back in court Thursday, where he has asked a judge to dismiss charges that he failed to succeed in the 2022 Robb Elementary School shooting. Take action on charges.

Pete Arredondo, 52, pleaded not guilty to charges of child endangerment and child abandonment. Rarely do U.S. law enforcement officers face criminal trials for their actions in school shootings.

On May 24, 2022, an attack occurred at Robb Elementary School, killing 19 students and two teachers. It was one of the deadliest school shootings in U.S. history. The law enforcement response, which included nearly 400 federal, state and local officials, was widely condemned as a colossal failure.

Arredondo’s attorneys argued that he was being sued for trying to save lives, including ordering the evacuation of other areas of the school. They believe the indictment will open up many future law enforcement actions to similar charges.

“Mr. Arredondo could not have committed a crime by evacuating some children before others could be rescued,” his attorneys wrote in a court filing. “All Texas peace officers should be afraid if the state is allowed to proceed in this manner.”

Uvalde County prosecutors urged a judge to dismiss Arredondo’s charges.

Another Uvalde school official who was at the scene that day, 51-year-old Adrian Gonzales, was indicted on similar charges but also pleaded not guilty. They are the only two officers charged in connection with the police response. Gonzalez is also expected to attend the hearing in Uvalde.

It’s unclear whether Judge Sid Haller will rule on Arredondo’s request Thursday or later. The hearing is also expected to cover defense requests for evidence and witnesses and other pretrial matters.

As terrified students and teachers called 911 in classrooms, dozens of police officers stood in the hallways trying to figure out what to do. More than an hour later, a group broke into the classroom and killed the gunman.

The indictment against Arredondo accuses the former chief of ignoring his active-shooter training and delaying police response as the gunman “went after the victim,” even though he was told injured children were in the classroom and that a teacher was shot .

Instead of immediately confronting the 18-year-old gunman, Arredondo called in a SWAT team, ordered the initial responders to leave the building and briefly tried to negotiate with the gunman, the indictment said.

Once Arredondo knew the shooter and the students in the classroom were in imminent danger, “Texas law requires emergency intervention to remove the children from that danger,” prosecutors argued.

Gonzalez faces similar charges in a separate 29-count indictment accusing him of failing to protect murder victims and survivors. Gonzalez’s legal team has not yet asked the court to drop the charges against him, but may do so later.

Each charge against the officers carries a maximum penalty of two years in prison. Both men have pleaded not guilty.

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Associated Press reporter Jim Verturno contributed from Austin, Texas.

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Lathan is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.