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

The police chief who reportedly made the call to not instantly ship officers into Robb Elementary School to confront a gunman was elected to Uvalde's City Council simply three weeks in the past after operating on a platform of communication and outreach to the group. 

Peter Arredondo, the chief of police for the Uvalde Consolidated Unbiased College District, stopped at the very least 19 officers from breaking into the college because the gunman opened fire for a minimum of an hour.

Arredondo believed that the shooter had barricaded himself and that the kids weren't beneath an active menace, Steven McCraw, the director of the Texas Division of Public Security, mentioned Friday. 

“From the good thing about hindsight where I’m sitting now, of course, it was not the right decision. It was a unsuitable choice. Interval. There was no excuse for that,” McCraw said at a information conference. “There have been loads of officers to do what needed to be achieved, with one exception, is that the incident commander inside believed he wanted more gear and extra officers to do a tactical breach at that time."

In response to McCraw, Arredondo believed there was no lively risk, so as an alternative of sending officers in, he spent time discovering keys that might let him into the varsity. Throughout this time, nonetheless, the shooter had unencumbered entry to hold out the assault. Nineteen students and two academics have been killed.

Arredondo was not current among law enforcement officers standing with McCraw on Friday, and McCraw did not explicitly identify him.

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

As the community demands answers and pieces together a shaky and conflicting timeline of occasions, scrutiny has turned to Arredondo, who was born and raised in Uvalde. 

After working as the police captain at the United Independent Faculty District in Laredo, Texas, about 140 miles south of Uvalde, Arredondo returned to his hometown in April 2020, when he accepted the position of chief of police for the Uvalde college district, in accordance with the Uvalde Chief-News.

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

Arredondo instructed the Leader-News that he was wanting to serve the neighborhood, saying he was committed to establishing a strong working relationship with the three officers he would be leading. 

“We want to be sure that we can be found wherever we're wanted,” Arredondo advised the newspaper.

As Arredondo’s tenure hit two years, his native likability led to a successful bid for a City Council seat this month. He beat out three different candidates, garnering almost 70 percent of the vote in the May 7 election, reported the Uvalde Leader-Information. 

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

“I’m very excited, I am ready to hit the ground running. I have plenty of concepts, and I undoubtedly have plenty of drive,” Arredondo advised the outlet this month.

Arredondo is scheduled to be sworn onto the council on Tuesday, precisely one week after the Uvalde capturing.

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