Ex-Uvalde schools police chief's effort to dismiss child endangerment charges fails
SAN ANTONIO, Texas - A Texas judge refused to throw out criminal charges against the former Uvalde schools police chief for putting children at risk during the 2022 school shooting at Robb Elementary.
What we know: Judge Sid Harle refused to throw out the 10 counts of child endangerment filed against ex-chief Pete Arredondo.
Arredondo was the on-site commander for the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde on May 24, 2022. 19 children and two teachers were killed when a gunman entered a classroom with an AR-15-style rifle and opened fire.
Pete Arredondo
More than 370 federal, state and local officers waited more than 70 minutes to confront the shooter.
Arredondo has argued that he was improperly charged and that he has been scapegoated for the botched response.
The indictment against Arredondo argues that he did not follow his active shooter training and made decisions that slowed the police response.
Arredondo allegedly caused delays by telling officers to evacuate a hallway to wait for a SWAT team, evacuating students from other areas of the building first and trying to negotiate with the shooter while victims inside the classroom were wounded and dying.
The former chief's attorneys argue that Arredondo was trying to save other children in the building and that prosecuting Arredondo would open other law enforcement officers to prosecution.
"If the State is allowed to proceed in this manner, all Texas peace officers should be terrified," Arredondo's lawyers wrote.
Adrian Gonzalez (left) and Pete Arredondo (right)
Arredondo and ex-Uvalde CISD police officer Adrian Gonzalez are the only officers who have faced charges in connection to the shooting.
Both men pleaded not guilty to the charges.
What's Next
At a court hearing in Uvalde on Thursday, Judge Sid Harle set an Oct. 20, 2025, trial date.
An attorney for Adrian Gonzales said he will ask for the trial to be moved out of Uvalde because his client cannot get a fair trial there. "Everybody knows everybody," in Uvalde, Gonzales attorney Nico LaHood said.
Uvalde County is mostly rural with fewer than 25,000 residents about 85 miles (140 kilometers) west of San Antonio.
Uvalde, Texas School Shooting
Uvalde families mark 2 year anniversary of deadly shooting
2 years after the deadly mass shooting at Robb Elementary School the families of the young victims have reached a settlement with the city of Uvalde and began lawsuits against, Texas DPS, a gun manufacturer, Instagram, and Activision the company that makes the video game Call of Duty which features the Daniel Defense gun used by the shooter.
The Backstory: The shooting at Robb Elementary was one of the worst school shootings in United States history.
Earlier this year, the Department of Justice released a nearly 600-page report detailing the ‘cascading failures’ by law enforcement on May 24, 2022.
READ MORE: ‘I don't want to die,' student tells 911 dispatcher from Uvalde school during mass shooting
Nearly 150 U.S. Border Patrol agents, 91 state police officers, school and city police responded to the scene, but waited for 77 minutes before entering the classroom and killing the 18-year-old shooter.
The report talked about the vast array of problems from failed communication and leadership, to the inadequate training and technology used by police.
A private investigator hired by the city cleared Uvalde city police of missteps.
Austin-based investigator Jesse Prado presented his findings this March.
Prado stated the department did not commit any wrongdoing or violate any policy.
Several of the families of the victims filed state and federal lawsuits.
Robb Elementary School Shooting Victims
19 Robb Elementary students were killed in the shooting.
- Xavier Javier Lopez, 10
- Amerie Jo Garza, 10
- Uziyah Garcia, 8
- Rojelio Torres, 10
- Annabell Guadalupe Rodriguez, 10
- Nevaeh Bravo, 10
- Makenna Lee Elrod, 10
- Eliahana 'Elijah Cruz' Torres, 10
- Eliana 'Ellie' Garcia, 9
- Alithia Ramirez, 10
- Jacklyn "Jackie" Cazares, 9
- Jayce Carmelo Luevanos, 10
- Jailah Nicole Silguero, 11
- Jose Flores Jr, 10
- Alexandria "Lexi" Aniyah Rubio, 10
- Maite Yuleana Rodriguez, 10
- Tess "Tessy" Marie Mata, 10
- Maranda Gail Mathis, 11
- Layla Salazar, 10
Fourth-grade co-teachers 48-year-old Irma Garcia and 44-year-old Eva Mireles were also killed. Family members said at the time both died trying to protect their students.