Jury Selection in Trial of Former Uvalde Officer Adrian Gonzales

Jury selection is set to begin in Corpus Christi, Texas, for the criminal trial of Adrian Gonzales, one of the first officers to arrive at Robb Elementary School, where a gunman killed 19 students and two teachers on May 24, 2022. The families of victims and survivors are preparing to testify.

Among them is Kassandra Martinez, whose son A.J., now 13, was shot and still lives with shrapnel in his leg, shoulders and head; she said she and her son expected to attend part of the trial and were praying for accountability. A judge approved a change of venue in October after Mr.

Gonzales’s lawyers argued it would be nearly impossible to find an impartial jury in Uvalde. Mr. Gonzales faces 29 counts, and the indictment says he was one of the first to arrive, was aware of the gunman’s location and did not “engage, distract and delay the shooter” before the attacker entered two classrooms.

His lawyer, Nico LaHood, has said the district attorney has not explained why his client was “singled out.” The Uvalde district attorney, Christina Mitchell, declined to comment. Former school district police chief Pete Arredondo is expected to be tried next; he faces 10 counts and has been accused of deciding the gunman was a barricaded subject rather than an active shooter.

Key Topics

Politics, Adrian Gonzales, Robb Elementary School, Corpus Christi, Uvalde Shooting, Pete Arredondo