Corpus Christi, Texas– Families of students killed in Uvalde, Texas, School massacre They are among those who could testify in the trial of a police officer who was part of the reluctant law enforcement response and is accused of failing to protect children from the teenage gunman.
Opening statements are scheduled to begin Tuesday in a rare case of impeachment against an officer accused of not doing more to save lives. authorities I waited over an hour To confront the shooter.
Adrian Gonzaleza former Uvalde schools officer who was among the first to respond to what was one of the worst school shootings in U.S. history, has pleaded not guilty. His lawyer said the officer tried to save the children that day.
Gonzalez faces 29 counts of child abandonment or endangerment and could be sentenced to a maximum of two years in prison if convicted.
He and former Uvalde Schools Police Chief Pete Arredondo are the only officers facing criminal charges over the response. Arredondo’s trial date has not been set.
Some of the victims’ families were upset about the presence of more officers It was not charged As nearly 400 federal, state and local officers gathered at the school shortly after the 2022 attack.
Terrified students inside classrooms called 911 and parents outside He begged for intervention By officers, some of whom heard gunfire while standing in the hallway. Eventually, a tactical team of officers entered the classroom and killed the shooter.
The gunman 19 students and two teachers were killed At Robb Elementary School.
The investigation found that 77 minutes passed from the time authorities arrived until the tactical team stormed the classroom and killed Salvador Ramos, who was Obsessed with violence and bad reputation In the months leading up to the shooting.
Judge Sid Harley said Gonzalez’s trial was expected to last about two weeks. before Jury seating On Monday, he told several hundred potential jurors that the court is not looking for those who know nothing about the shooting but wants jurors who can be impartial.
Potential witnesses include FBI agents, Texas Rangers, emergency dispatchers and school employees.
At the request of Gonzalez’s attorneys, the trial was moved to Corpus Christi after they argued that Gonzalez could not get a fair trial in Uvalde.
The indictment accuses Gonzalez of exposing the children to “imminent risk” of injury or death by failing to engage, distracting or delaying the shooter and failing to follow his training. Allegations also say he did not head toward the scene of the shooting despite hearing gunshots and being informed of the shooter’s location.
State and federal reviews of the shooting have been cited Consecutive problems In law enforcement training, communications, leadership and technology, he wondered why officers had to wait so long.
According to the state audit, Gonzalez told investigators that once police realized there were students still sitting in other classrooms, he helped evacuate them.
Prosecutors will likely face a high hurdle to winning a conviction. Juries are often reluctant to convict law enforcement officers for inaction, as we have seen yet The 2018 Parkland, Florida, school massacre.
Sheriff’s Deputy Scott Peterson was charged with failing to confront the shooter in that attack. This was the first trial of its kind in the United States for a campus shooting, and Peterson was He was acquitted by a jury In 2023.
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Associated Press writers Jim Vertuno in Austin, Texas, and Juan A. Lozano in Houston, and John Sewer in Toledo, Ohio.