Pete Arredondo, the police chief of the Uvalde Unified Independent School District, was elected to the post on May 7 and sworn in during a private ceremony on May 31, a week after gunman Salvador Ramos killed 19 children and two teachers at Robb Elementary School. Arredondo maintains he was not the incident commander on the day of the shooting, a claim disputed by the Texas Department of Public Safety, which is investigating the massacre. “After much thought, I regret to inform those who voted for me that I have decided to resign as a member of the city council for District 3,” Arredondo told the Uvalde Leader News. “The mayor, city council and city staff must continue to move forward without distraction. I believe this is the best decision for Uvalde.” Arrendondo had not attended any City Council meetings since his inauguration. Uvalde Schools Police Chief Pete Arredondo has resigned from the city council. Mikala Compton-USA TODAY NETWORK/Sipa USA The board met on June 21 to discuss Arrendondo’s request for a permit, which it ultimately denied, according to the New York Times. Several residents approached the floor of the meeting and called on the chief to resign. “After he chose to wait an hour for backup, instead of ordering the officers to drop the shooter, he’s proven he can’t do his job,” said 17-year-old Jazmin Cazares, who lost her sister and cousin in the massacre. council. “How am I supposed to stop grieving, especially knowing that she did nothing to protect my sister, my cousin, her friends, and her teachers?” Martin Herrera, who lost a grandson in the shooting, told the Times that Arredondo’s resignation was the right move for the city as it slowly recovers from the tragedy. Leonard Sandoval, who also lost a grandson in the shooting, told the newspaper Arredondo “should have resigned much earlier.”
