Opinion: The pathetic lessons of the Uvalde school shooting
Los Angeles TimesJan 20
Former Police Chief Charged in Uvalde School Shooting
Image copyright: Brandon Bell/Staff/Getty Images News via Getty Images
The Facts
On Thursday, the police chief of Uvalde, Texas, during the 2022 Robb Elementary school shooting, Pete Arredondo, was indicted on 10 counts of felony child endangerment over the law enforcement response to the mass shooting.
These are the first criminal charges laid against police for the shooting that left 19 children and two teachers dead. Arredondo was released the same day on a $10K bond, while a second officer was also indicted for his role in the police response.
The Spin
Democratic narrative
The tragedy in Uvalde was a failure on all levels of government. The police on scene violated every principle they've been taught regarding active shooters, as incompetence and cowardice allowed the shooter to continue his massacre unabated. While this indictment will hopefully afford the families of those affected some closure for the events of that awful day, there is still no political will to address the root issue of guns in America.
Republican narrative
The police response at Robb Elementary was disastrous, but the political hijacking of this case for gun control causes has obscured that. The lesson we should learn is that guns do indeed keep us safer, and it was the failure of the police to use them soon enough that allowed the tragedy to unfold. These indictments lay bare that guns are not the issue, as good people with guns do stop tragedies.