The Uvalde shooting victims’ families are calling for the school board to fire the district’s police chief over his actions during the Robb Elementary massacre.
On Monday night, Uvalde community members came to the forefront before Uvalde’s school district to discuss their frustration with the actions or the lack of action that took place from the police force on the day of the shooting.
Video footage showing officers waiting to confront the shooter and even getting hand sanitizer in the school have surfaced, sparking even more outrage in the community. Community members and victims’ families also want to know what safety measures will be implemented.
“There is an anxiousness in my heart that is only worsened by the fear my children have,” said Rachel Martinez, a parent of four children. “I think no one person here today can deny there was a massive failure on May 24. Where these failures lie is the question.”
In a 77-page interim report released by the Texas House investigative committee, there were a slew of mistakes and inactions law enforcement exhibited in their response to the shooting. As a result, the community is now calling for the firing of district’s police chief Pedro “Pete” Arredondo, who recently said during an interview that he didn’t consider himself to be the incident commander. However, state authorities claim Arredondo was in face the commanding officer. The report describes police efforts as “an overall lackadaisical approach.”
