Status: 08/25/2022 03:42 a.m
The killing spree at a Texas elementary school at the end of May shook the United States. Police officers waited an agonizingly long time outside the classroom at the end of May while the shooter took 21 lives inside. The disaster in the police operation now has personal consequences.
Three months after the devastating killing spree at an elementary school in the US state of Texas, there are personnel consequences due to the serious omissions in the police operation.
The responsible body of the Uvalde school district decided behind closed doors to fire the school district police chief Pete Arredondo, as the broadcaster CNN and other US media reported unanimously.
An 18-year-old gunman shot dead 19 children and 2 teachers at the primary school in the small town of Uvalde at the end of May. The attacker shot his victims in two connected classrooms with an assault rifle.
Dramatic failures of the police
In addition to the act itself, dramatic omissions in the police operation also caused bewilderment: Accordingly, 19 police officers had already taken up a position in the hallway in front of the classroom in which the gunman had holed himself up with teachers and students.
However, the officers made no attempts to enter the room and stop the perpetrator for more than 45 minutes. Instead, they waited for reinforcements, although children from inside the room made numerous frantic calls to the police for help. More than 75 minutes after the shooter opened fire, emergency services entered the classroom and killed the gunman.
Several relatives accused the police that they could have saved lives if they had not waited so long. In particular, the school district police chief came under pressure because he was on the scene early on and, according to his critics, responsible for coordinating the operation.
Arredondo stayed away from the meeting
Ahead of the school board meeting, Arredondo had his attorney George Hyde circulate a statement. The school district police chief is a “courageous officer” who should be “celebrated for the lives saved” and not “vilified for those he could not reach in time,” the letter said.
Arredondo also justified his absence from the meeting. He’s worried about his safety. However, the school district did not allow him to come to the meeting armed, his letter said. At the beginning of the closed session, some of the audience loudly called for Arredondo’s dismissal. “Coward!” and “What about our children?” chanted the victims’ parents.