A former Uvalde schools police officer was acquitted Wednesday of charges that he failed in his duty to confront the gunman at Robb Elementary during the initial moments of one of the deadliest school shootings in U.S. history. Adrian Gonzales, 52, faced 29 counts of child abandonment and endangerment — each count representing the 19 students killed and 10 others injured in the 2022 attack. Jurors deliberated for more than seven hours before returning a not-guilty verdict.
The case marked the first criminal trial in the United States over a law enforcement officer’s failure to stop an on-campus shooting. Though at least 370 law enforcement officers responded to the attack, only Gonzales and former police chief Pete Arredondo have been charged.
Verdict brings questions about duty and accountability
Gonzales appeared to fight back tears and hugged his lawyers after the verdict was read in Corpus Christi, hundreds of miles from Uvalde, where his legal team said a fair trial would not have been possible. “Thank you to the jury for considering all the evidence,” he told reporters. When asked if he wanted to address the families of the victims, he declined.
Several family members of victims sat in silence in the courtroom, some crying or wiping away tears.
Defense: perspective and competing priorities
Gonzales’ legal team argued he arrived upon a chaotic scene of rifle shots echoing on school grounds and never saw the gunman before the attacker entered the building. They contended that three other officers who arrived seconds later had a better chance to stop the gunman.
“He was the lowest man on the totem pole. They thought he was easy pickings,” attorney Nico LaHood said of prosecutors after the acquittal. LaHood said he briefly polled jurors after the verdict. “They talked about gaps. They talked about perspective and what the government didn’t prove about Adrian,” he said.
What comes next for Arredondo
Paul Looney, attorney for Arredondo, said he believes the verdict will result in prosecutors dropping the case against his client. “These people have been vilified, and it’s horrible what’s been done to them. These guys didn’t do anything wrong,” Looney said.
Still, Looney said he wants Arredondo to go to trial. “Pete Arredondo deserves and needs a complete airing and public vindication. I hope he gets that chance,” he said.
Families seek answers, juries stay reluctant
Jesse Rizo, whose 9-year-old niece Jackie Cazares was killed, expressed frustration with the verdict. “Faith is fractured, but you never lose faith,” he said. He hopes prosecutors will press ahead with Arredondo’s case. “Those children in the cemetery can’t speak for themselves,” Rizo said.
Families attended the trial in Corpus Christi, making the long drive from Uvalde. Early in the proceedings, the sister of one of the teachers killed was removed from the courtroom after an angry outburst following one officer’s testimony.
Juries have often been reluctant to convict law enforcement officers for inaction. In 2018, a Parkland, Florida sheriff’s deputy was acquitted after being charged with failing to confront the shooter in that school massacre. That case marked the first such prosecution in the U.S. for an on-campus shooting before Gonzales’ trial.
State and federal reviews of the Robb Elementary attack cited cascading problems in law enforcement training, communication, leadership, and technology, and questioned why officers waited so long before confronting the gunman.