Trial begins for officer accused of failing to protect children during Uvalde school shooting
Uvalde school shooting trial begins
- Adrian Gonzales, a former Uvalde schools officer, is due to stand trial on 29 counts of child abandonment or endangerment following the 2022 school shooting.
- Prosecutors allege Gonzales failed to confront the gunman or protect students, despite being among the first officers to respond to the attack that killed 19 students and two teachers.
- This marks a rare criminal prosecution of a police officer for allegedly failing to act to prevent a crime and protect lives, with legal experts noting the difficulty in securing such convictions.
- Gonzales's attorney maintains his client's innocence, stating he was focused on evacuating children from the building.
- Jury selection for the trial, which has been moved to Corpus Christi due to concerns about a fair trial in Uvalde, is scheduled to begin on 5 January.