Uvalde, Tx., school officials have suspended all of the district police department’s activities after the firing of a recently hired district officer who was one of the first state troopers to respond to the deadly school shooting in May. Lt. Miguel Hernandez and Ken Mueller were placed on leave, and other officers will fill other roles, the Texas Tribune reports. Mueller decided to retire. The school district did not specify why Hernandez and Mueller were placed on leave. Uvalde school district Superintendent Hal Harrell said he planned to retire. In his three decades at the district, which he also graduated from, Harrell was a teacher, principal, assistant superintendent and deputy superintendent before he was hired for his current position in November 2018.
The district’s decision to suspend its police department came 10 days after protesters at the Uvalde schools administrative building demanded the removal of officers from campus grounds until investigations into the police department’s response to the shooting are complete. The district said its police department’s activities Friday, citing “recent developments that have uncovered additional concerns with department operations.” The district had fired Crimson Elizondo after it became public that she was one of the first state troopers to arrive at Robb Elementary on May 24, when a gunman killed 19 students and two teachers in the deadliest school shooting in Texas history. The delayed police response has drawn wide scrutiny and remains under investigation.