Uvalde School District Moves to Fire Police Chief After Mass Shooting

Uvalde Consolidated Independent School District officials published an agenda for a special school board meeting to consider firing the district’s embattled police chief. The move comes days after a report from the Texas House detailing failures at many levels in advance and in response to the shooting at Robb Elementary School in May.

Uvalde school district officials published an agenda for a special school board meeting on July 23. The agenda calls for an executive session and public meeting for: “Discussion and possible action regarding termination for good cause as recommended by the Superintendent of the non-certified contract of Pete Arredondo.”

The agenda also calls for a closed session. The agenda states:

A closed session will be held under Provisions of Texas Government Code, Chapter 551, Sections 551.071 and 551.074.

A. Pursuant to Section 551.071 and 551.074 of the Texas Government Code, consultation with the District’s attorney concerning legal and procedural issues related to recommended termination for good cause of the non-certified contract of Pete Arredondo.

B. Pursuant to Section 551.074 of the Texas Government Code, conduct hearing for good cause as recommended by the Superintendent of the non-certified contract of Pete Arredondo.

The special meeting comes days after The Texas House Investigative Committee on the Robb Elementary School Shooting released a 77-page report on Sunday providing the most detailed account of the incident to date. The report said no one was able to stop the shooter because of what it described as “systemic failures and egregious poor decision making” by people who were either in power or could have been in power to take action.

In addition to criticism of the police response to the school shooting, the report cites failures within the school district in advance of the shooting that contributed to the shooter having access to Robb Elementary School and the classroom where the shooting took place.

The school district’s special meeting agenda makes no mention of the termination of any employees of the school district related to the failure to follow school safety policies and maintenance procedures that contributed to the shooting incident.

The shooter entered the school through the unlocked south door and walked directly to the classroom with a previously reported malfunctioning lock, Texas DPS officials told Breitbart Texas. Senator Bettencourt and DPS officials also told Breitbart the shooter attended Robb Elementary School in this particular classroom as a younger child.

Senator Bettencourt also told Breitbart that there are multiple breaches in the fencing outside the school. Instead of repairing the gaps, the district strung rope. The fence is also only four feet tall–allowing the shooter to easily enter the school perimeter.

The district placed Chief Arradondo on administrative leave on June 22, Breitbart Texas reported. The embattled police chief also resigned from a Uvalde City Council seat to which he had just been elected.