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The
district said it suspended all activities of the Uvalde
Consolidated Independent School District Police Department "for
a period of time." The police force consisted of five officers
and one security guard, according to its website.
The district is awaiting the results of an investigation led by
the Texas Police Chiefs Association and an outside firm into the
shooting at Robb Elementary School, expected to be released
later this month.
The district said it made the decision to suspend the police
force because "recent developments have uncovered additional
concerns with department operations."
The district also said that as a "result of the recent
developments," one officer, Lieutenant Miguel Hernandez, was
placed on administrative leave. Ken Mueller, the director of
student services, was also placed on administrative leave and
will retire, the district said in its statement.
The school district declined to provide more information about
the suspension and the state of department operations. The
police department was not available for comment.
The police department has been under investigation for its
response to the shooting in May, including delays by officers in
reaching the gunman while he was holed up in a classroom.
The school district said it requested additional officers from
the Texas Department of Public Safety to provide campus
security.
Pete Arredondo, who led the small police force tasked with
patrolling school grounds, was fired as police chief in August.
He faced fierce criticism for law enforcement's reaction.
The suspension of the police force comes more than a week after
parents of children who survived the shooting sued the Uvalde
Consolidated Independent School District, former officials, the
manufacturer of the gun used in the massacre and others.
Uvalde officials came under scrutiny after nearly 400 law
enforcement officers waited outside school classrooms for more
than an hour before confronting and killing the shooter.
In July, the Texas legislature released a report blaming the
response on “systemic failures” and poor leadership, adding that
inaction allowed for the death toll to grow higher.
(Reporting by Brendan O'Brien; Editing by Tim Ahmann and Leslie
Adler)
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