A former Uvalde school police officer is standing trial this week, facing 29 counts of child endangerment for his actions during the deadly 2022 Robb Elementary School massacre that claimed 21 lives.
Adrian Gonzales, who worked for the Uvalde Consolidated Independent School District, allegedly had over a minute to intervene before the gunman entered the building but took nearly four times as long to respond, according to testimony from Texas Ranger Nick Hill revealed during court proceedings.
Critical Minutes Lost as Shooter Approached
Prosecutors paint a damning timeline: Gonzales had one minute and four seconds between parking his patrol car and the moment 18-year-old Salvador Ramos entered the school. Instead, he took three minutes and 53 seconds to enter the building — by which time the gunman had already begun his rampage that would ultimately kill 19 students and two teachers.
During those critical minutes, a teacher’s aide desperately tried to alert Gonzales to the danger. Melodye Flores testified that she saw the officer pacing outside as the armed gunman approached the school. “I kept telling him, ‘He’s right there. … You need to do something,'” Flores recounted to the court, her voice breaking with emotion.
The trial, which began Monday with jury selection in Corpus Christi, Texas, marks one of the first criminal proceedings against law enforcement officers for their widely criticized response to the massacre. The venue was changed from Uvalde due to the intense local attention surrounding the case.
By the Numbers: A Devastating Toll
Ranger Hill’s testimony included staggering statistics about the shooting: Ramos fired 173 total shots during the attack, including 117 in just the first two minutes. Law enforcement, by comparison, discharged only 25 rounds throughout the entire incident.
The 29 charges against Gonzales represent each child who was killed or injured — 19 counts for the students who died and 10 for those who were wounded. If convicted, he could face between six months and two years behind bars for each count, though sentences would likely run concurrently, according to legal experts.
Why did it take so long for officers to confront the shooter? That question has haunted families and the Uvalde community for nearly four years, as investigations revealed a chaotic, uncoordinated police response involving multiple agencies.
Retired Sergeant Daniel Coronado has emerged as another key witness in the case. His body-camera footage from that day has been entered into evidence and was previously released to the public, showing portions of the police response that has been widely criticized for its lack of urgency.
A Community Still Seeking Answers
Gonzales is one of just two officers to face criminal charges for their actions during the May 24, 2022 shooting, despite nearly 400 law enforcement personnel responding to the scene. Many officers remained in the hallway for over an hour while the gunman remained barricaded in classrooms with victims.
In the courtroom Tuesday, family members of victims dabbed tears as prosecutors described the timeline of events. Several wore t-shirts bearing photos of their lost loved ones.
The trial continues this week following a three-day holiday weekend, with more testimony expected from law enforcement officials and school personnel who witnessed the officer’s actions that day.
For the Uvalde community, which has spent years demanding accountability, these proceedings represent just one piece of a much larger search for justice that continues to unfold nearly four years after their unimaginable loss.
