Uvalde police chief who delayed officer response to Texas taking pictures to hitch Metropolis Council

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

Peter Arredondo, the chief of police for the Uvalde Consolidated Impartial School District, stopped a minimum of 19 officers from breaking into the school as the gunman opened fireplace for no less than an hour.

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

“From the benefit of hindsight where I’m sitting now, after all, it was not the appropriate determination. It was a mistaken decision. Interval. There was no excuse for that,” McCraw said at a news conference. “There have been loads of officers to do what wanted to be executed, with one exception, is that the incident commander inside believed he wanted extra equipment and more officers to do a tactical breach at the moment."

According to McCraw, Arredondo believed there was no lively threat, so as an alternative of sending officers in, he hung out finding keys that will let him into the school. Throughout this time, however, the shooter had unencumbered access to hold out the assault. Nineteen college students and two teachers have been killed.

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

Arredondo did not immediately return a request for remark by NBC Information.

Because the community demands answers 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 on the United Unbiased School 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 faculty district, in accordance with the Uvalde Chief-News.

The previous chief, Leo Flores, resigned after being arrested on charges of unlawfully carrying a gun in a bar and threatening an officer, the newspaper reported. 

Arredondo instructed the Chief-News that he was desperate to serve the group, saying he was dedicated to establishing a powerful working relationship with the three officers he can be leading. 

“We want to be certain we are available wherever we're wanted,” Arredondo informed the newspaper.

As Arredondo’s tenure hit two years, his local likability led to a successful bid for a City Council seat this month. He beat out three other candidates, garnering almost 70 p.c of the vote within the Could 7 election, reported the Uvalde Chief-News. 

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

“I’m very excited, I am ready to hit the ground running. I have loads of ideas, and I positively have plenty 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 shooting.

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