The most recent school shooting in Texas has left the parents of 19 students grieving for their loss. Firstly, this is something no parent should endure, and they are now seeking retribution. In short, they want the school district Police Chief to resign from his position on account that he did not make the necessary decision that would have saved many lives.
They want him held accountable
An emotional meeting was held by the Uvalde, Texas School Board on the evening of June 20th. It was almost one month since the shooting where 19 students were killed, along with two teachers. Which was called upon by parents of children who attended the school. They were calling for the resignation of the police chief, Pete Arredondo, who was in charge of the recent shooting.
The meeting held at the school was emotional, to say the least. Jesus Rizo Jr addresses the room. He said: “At one point or another you’re going to have to draw a line in the sand to decide if you hold one of your own accountable. Pete, Mr. Arredondo, is also my friend. I’m sure we all got along with him. At one point or another, we’re going to have to decide if we hold them accountable. And I pray that you make the right decision.”
The victim’s loved ones spoke up
Brett Cross is the uncle of one of the victims, Uziyah Garcia. He expressed his discomfort at the thought of the chief still working. “Having Pete still employed, knowing he is incapable of decision-making that saves lives is terrifying. Innocence doesn’t hide, innocence doesn’t change its story, but innocence did die on May 24,” said Brett.
One of the speakers was the daughter of a teacher who died. Her father died shortly after the incident from heart difficulties. “The horrifying manner in which my mother was murdered and taken from us completely shattered our hearts, but made my dad’s stop,” Garcia said. “There shouldn’t have been a reason my mom didn’t come home that day.”
In the investigation that happened after, it was found that man of the acting officers was keen to go in and secure the gunman. They believed there were still kids in their classrooms. But, they were told to wait for confirmation from the commanding officer.
The parents want Chief Arredondo to be held accountable for the many deaths. They say he did not make the necessary decision that would have saved many lives. After the gunman got inside the school using a Halligan bar, it took the police 77 minutes to go in to capture him. They were waiting for the incident commander, Pete Arredondo, to make the call.
“He is incapable of decision-making that saves lives“
On June 9th, Arredondo made a statement to The Texas Tribune “Not a single responding officer ever hesitated, even for a moment, to put themselves at risk to save the children. Not a single responding officer ever hesitated, even for a moment, to put themselves at risk to save the children. We responded to the information that we had and had to adjust to whatever we faced.
“Our objective was to save as many lives as we could, and the extraction of the students from the classrooms by all that were involved saved over 500 of our Uvalde students and teachers before we gained access to the shooter and eliminated the threat.”.
He added: “We responded to the information that we had and had to adjust to whatever we faced. Our objective was to save as many lives as we could, and the extraction of the students from the classrooms by all that were involved saved over 500 of our Uvalde students and teachers before we gained access to the shooter and eliminated the threat.”
Keep Reading: Two 10-Year-Old Uvalde Victims Who Texted ‘I Love You’ Will Be Buried Next To Each Other
Sources
- “Uvalde parents, community members call for chief’s resignation at emotional school board meeting.” ABC News. Tonya Simpson, Laura Romero, and Olivia Osteen, June 21, 2022,
- “If there’s kids in there, we need to go in”: Officers in Uvalde were ready with guns, shields and tools — but not clear orders. Texas Tribune. Terri Langford. June 20, 2022.