On Tuesday, the senior Texas official in charge of the investigation described the response as an “absolute failure.” At the center of the furor was Pedro “Pete” Aredondo, the school’s police chief. On Wednesday, nearly a month after the bloodbath, he was released.
“Since the beginning of this horrific event, I have said that the district will wait until the investigation is completed before making personnel decisions,” said Hal Harel, governor of the independent school district of Uvalde Consolidated.
“Today, I am still without details about the investigations conducted by various agencies. “Due to the lack of clarity that remains and the unknown moment when I will receive the results of the investigations, I decided to appoint Chief Aredondo on administrative leave, which takes effect from that date,” he said.
Aredondo and responsible law enforcement agencies have faced fierce criticism during a time when officers were stationed in the corridor in front of adjacent classrooms 111 and 112 at Rob Elementary School, where the 18-year-old shooter and the victims were housed. The gunman fired on police officers in the first minutes of the shooting, two of whom received fever wounds, according to an updated schedule from the Texas Department of Public Safety. Still, it would be more than 70 minutes before the shooter was shot and killed by authorities who stormed the room. Earlier this month, Aredondo told The Texas Tribune that he did not consider himself the commander of the incident and did not instruct officers to refrain from violating the scene. Berlinda Irene Areola, the grandmother of the victim of the shooting, Ameri Joe Garza, spoke at a tense meeting of the city council on Tuesday, where Aredondo was not present. The school’s police chief was elected to the council earlier this year and remained out of the public eye after the shooting.
“He let us down,” Areola told Aredondo to council members. “Don’t make the same mistake he did and don’t fail us. Go ahead and fix things … please, please, please, get this man out of our lives. “
The council later unanimously voted to deny Aredondo leave from future council meetings, and the decision was met with applause from residents. According to the city charter, Aredondo can be removed from office if he does not attend three consecutive meetings of the city council without an apology.
Areola spoke to CNN on Wednesday about the pain of losing 10-year-old Ameri, as well as the aftermath, with preliminary details from investigations suggesting more could have been done earlier.
“Every day it gets harder and harder when it comes to her absence, the pain we feel. But also with the anger that unfolds before our eyes, “Areola told Brianna Keiler of CNN.
“We need to speak on behalf of all these children, all these families. We need to make things right, we need to get to the bottom of everything that has happened and understand the truth.”
Amery’s stepfather, Angel Garza, was a first aid officer at the scene of the shooting and told CNN on Wednesday that he did not understand how police did not act when they were located outside the classroom so close to the victims.
“I just don’t understand how you can hear these children crying and begging for help, but you’re afraid to come in because your commander doesn’t want you to come in,” he said.
His parents, including himself, were “right in front” of the school. “I was trying to get in, they handcuffed me,” he said, mad that the police he had entrusted to him “did not save my daughter or any of the other children.”
Aredondo testified in front of a Texas House committee behind closed doors on Tuesday about the day of the shooting and did not comment publicly. CNN asked Aredondo’s lawyer for comment.
Lieutenant Mike Hernandez takes over as UCISD police chief during Aredondo’s vacation, according to the school district.
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While Aredondo received the lion’s share of public criticism for the way police handled the crisis, Mayor Uwalde was quick to point out on Tuesday that he believes other law enforcement agencies should also be held accountable and provide updates to city officials.
In sharp remarks at the city council meeting, Mayor Don McLaughlin accused DPS Director Colonel Stephen McCroy of evading his department’s responsibility and noted that employees of at least eight law enforcement agencies were inside Robb Elementary at the time of the shooting.
“Colonel McCrow continues to lie, leak, mislead or misrepresent information, whether you want to call him or her, to keep his own soldiers and rangers from answering. At each briefing, he misses the number of his own officers and the Rangers who were on site that day, “McLaughlin said.
McLaughlin also condemned the leak of information from unnamed sources, which he said were intended to shift the blame for the police’s response from certain agencies and more to local law enforcement.
“Colonel McCrow has an agenda and it is not to present a full report on what happened and give factual answers about what happened to this community,” the mayor said, adding that he should have received a daily briefing from authorities the next day. such is not provided.
McCrow at a Texas Senate hearing on Tuesday accused Aredondo of ordering police to wait for unnecessary equipment and keys for a door that may not have been locked as expected.
CNN contacted the Texas Department of Public Safety for comment.
CNN’s Jamil Lynch, Matthew J. Friedman, Amanda Musa, Eric Levenson, Christina Maxuris, Rosalina Nives, Andy Rose and Amy Simmonson contributed to this report.
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