The Uvalde Consolidated Independent School District suspended its entire police department on Friday amidst criticism of how it handled the mass shooting that killed over a dozen school children.
“The District remains committed to resolving issues with verifiable evidence. Decisions concerning the UCISD police department have been pending the results of the Texas Police Chiefs Association and JPPI investigation. Recent developments have uncovered additional concerns with department operations,” the district said in a statement.
The district said Lt. Miguel Hernandez and Ken Mueller had been placed on leave, and other police department members would be placed in different roles for the time being. District officials have requested that the Texas Department of Public Safety handle school security in the police department’s absence.
“We are confident that staff and student safety will not be compromised during this transition,” the district said.
Nineteen students and two teachers were murdered at Robb Elementary School last May, when a gunman broke into a classroom and began firing. Although law enforcement made it outside the classroom relatively quickly, it took over one hour for them to stop the gunman.
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