Uvalde school district police chief fails to respond to Texas probe

The chief of the school police in Uvalde, Texas has reportedly not responded to a request for a follow-up interview for the investigation into the law enforcement response to the massacre Tuesday that killed 19 children and two teachers at an elementary school.

According to Fox News, Pete Arredondo, the Uvalde school district police chief, has not responded to Texas Rangers in two days for a follow-up interview regarding his initial statements following the shooting.

His Facebook page has also been taken down.

Arredondo disputed the reports and the statements by DPS and told CNN "I am in touch with DPS everyday." He added, that he's not going to release any further information while funerals for the victims are ongoing. "We're going to be respectful to the family. We're going to do that eventually. Whenever this is done and the families quit grieving, then we'll do that obviously."

Arredondo, who became the chief of police for the Uvalde school district in 2020, assumed the role of incident commander last week and made the decision to not immediately confront the shooter at Robb Elementary School during the massacre last week which killed 19 children and 2 adults. Officers were on standby in a hallway in the school for nearly an hour before breaching the classroom door.

Following a press conference Friday, during which the head of the Texas Department of Public Safety Steven McCraw said the delayed police response to the shooting was "the wrong decision," investigations have begun into the actions of the agencies involved.

McCraw said during the presser that Arredondo thought the situation had transitioned from an active shooter to a barricaded subject, and assumed the officers had the time to wait for keys to unlock the classroom's door and tactical equipment.

An earlier report by ABC News claimed that The Uvalde Police Department and Uvalde Consolidated Independent School District police were also no longer cooperating with authorities. However, a Texas Department of Public Safety spokesman clarified in a statement to Fox News, "The Uvalde Police Department and Uvalde CISD Police have been cooperating with investigators."

According to the statement, "The chief of the Uvalde CISD Police provided an initial interview but has not responded to a request for a follow up interview with the Texas Rangers that was made two days ago."

On Tuesday, Arredondo, who was elected to the city council earlier this month, was formally sworn in as a new city council member, despite not responding to a request for a follow-up interview from the Texas Rangers.

It has also been revealed that Arrendondo held active shooter drills at the local high school just days before the massacre.

Uvalde Mayor Don McLaughlin said Tuesday evening, "Uvalde City Council members were sworn in today as per the City Charter. Out of respect for the families who buried their children today, and who are planning to bury their children in the next few days, no ceremony was held."

He added, "Our parents deserve answers and I trust the Texas Department of Public Safety/Texas Rangers will leave no stone unturned."

The response of law enforcement, as well inaccurate information being provided by authorities in the days after the massacre have generated criticism from parents of the victims as well as officials who had originally praised authorities immediately after the shooting.

Funeral services for the victims began on Tuesday.