During opening statements in the trial of Adrian Gonzales, 52, prosecutors alleged the former school district police officer failed to act when given information regarding the location of the gunman who opened fire at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas.
Special prosecutor Bill Turner claimed Gonzales didn’t enter the school to deter or delay the gunman until “after the damage had been done,” per The Associated Press. In May 2022, 19 students and two teachers were killed in the shooting with 10 additional students sustaining injuries. In 2024, the former officer pleaded not guilty to 29 counts of child endangerment or abandonment.
Defense attorneys Nico LaHood and Jason Goss argued that Gonzales “did the best he could with what he knew at the time.” The lawyers said of the gunman, Salvador Ramos, who was killed by Border Patrol officers: “The monster who did this to these kids, the monster who hurt these children, is dead. He is dead. He doesn’t get this justice.”
According to ABC News, Turner pushed back on this, alleging that Gonzales retreated at the opportunity to confront the gunman in multiple instances. He stated that a teacher crossed paths with Gonzales while attempting to flee. “She’s face-to-face with the gunman, and he fires on her, and she turns to run, and when she turns to run, she trips and she falls. And when she gets up, Adrian Gonzales, the police officer, is there. She says, ‘He’s over there.’ She urges him to go get him,” he said.
Turner added: “He gets on the radio and says, ‘Shots are fired, he’s wearing black, he’s in the parking lot.’ He knows where he is, but Adrian Gonzales remains at the south side of the school.” Per AP, Velma Lisa Duran, sister of teacher Irma Garcia, who died in the shooting, previously said, “He could have stopped him, but he didn’t want to be the target.”
LaHood echoed the defense that Goss maintained, stating, “The government wants to make it seem like he just sat there, you know. He didn’t just sit there — he did what he could with what he knew at the time.”
Gonzales is one of two officers who were indicted by a grand jury for their role in responding to the gunman. Pete Arredondo, the former chief who served as police commander, has not yet received a set trial date.
Law enforcement response to the massacre has been described as a major failure by both the Department of Justice and the Texas House of Representatives. Investigations revealed that officials waited outside Robb Elementary for more than an hour before entering and confronting the gunman, who was killed inside a classroom.
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