At a Glance
- Former Uvalde police officer Adrian Gonzales faces 29 counts of abandoning and failing to protect children.
- He is set to stand trial in Corpus Christi after a venue change.
- The May 2022 rampage left 19 students and 2 teachers dead.
- Why it matters: The case probes whether police inaction during a mass shooting can lead to criminal liability.
The trial of former Uvalde County ISD police officer Adrian Gonzales is set to begin in Corpus Christi after a judge granted a change of venue. Gonzales pleaded not guilty to 29 counts of abandoning and failing to protect children during the May 2022 rampage that left 19 students and two teachers dead.
Courtroom Shift and Trial Setting
The case will be heard at the Nueces County Courthouse, following a venue change ordered by a judge to address the high-profile nature of the case.
Expert Perspectives on Legal Liability
Russell Wilson stated:
> you’re aware that there are gunshots being fired and you’re aware that you not taking action could result in these children being harmed. Therefore, you have committed the offense of child endangerment… But I think the defense will say that the duty to defend or protect the public does not require the officer himself to jeopardize his own life.
Russell Wilson added:
> The magnitude and nature of the tragedy or whether or not there was a tragedy is not really what’s on trial here… I think the key for the public would be trying to focus in on the inactions and probably really maybe in the back of our minds. Do you want your law enforcement officers, to what degree do you want them, subject to prosecution for their bad acts?
Training Gaps Highlighted by Former Officer
Scott Savage said:
> We show a photo of the little kids that were killed in the Uvalde incident and then displayed over the photo is the numbers 376, representing the number of officers there and then the number 77, which is the number of minutes it took for the officers to get in there.
> I think what the officers did is awful and I think it is inept… However, it’s a different decision to say is what they did criminal?
> I think we need to separate the moral obligation and the emotional aspect of this with the actual cold, hard facts of the law, and I’m just not sure how the prosecution in this case is going to prove care, custody and control… Unless those kids and the victims were in the care, custody, and control of the police officers, there’s no special relationship, meaning what they did while tragic, while inept, while probably a product of terrible training, may not be criminal.
> The way that the police are trained conventionally to respond to active shooters is in no way preparing them for the reality of what they face… I think we need as a society to look at how are police officers are actually being trained. As a person who’s on the inside, who literally sees how police officers train, I’m telling you right now, it’s not the way you think it is. And some officers may perform admirably in these situations, despite their training.
> If we all just throw our hands up and say, there’s 376 officers there and they were all cowards, if that’s what we’re believing, how did 376 people all suffer from the same personality flaw? I actually think it’s much more complex than that… I think the way cops are being trained is actually today not going to prevent this from happening again.
Key Takeaways
- Former Uvalde officer faces 29 criminal counts related to the May 2022 massacre.
- Trial location changed to Corpus Christi to address high-profile concerns.
- Experts argue that police inaction may not rise to criminal liability without a special relationship or duty to endangerment.
The case highlights the tension between law enforcement expectations and legal accountability in mass shooting incidents.
