CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Jury selection began Monday in the trial of former Uvalde Consolidated Independent School District police officer Adrian Gonzales, who faces 29 felony counts of abandoning or endangering a child for his alleged actions during the 2022 Robb Elementary School shooting.
The trial is taking place in Corpus Christi after it was moved from Uvalde to Nueces County. Gonzales has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Prosecutors allege Gonzales failed to engage, distract or delay the shooter and did not follow his active-shooter training to confront the gunman during the May 24, 2022, attack that killed 19 students and two teachers.
Several victims’ family members are attending the trial, including Manuel Rizo, the uncle of 9-year-old Jackie Cazares, one of the students killed in the shooting.
The Robb Elementary shooting prompted a response from hundreds of law enforcement officers from multiple agencies. State and federal reviews later described the response as a failure, citing that officers waited more than an hour before confronting the shooter.
Prosecutors have issued 75 subpoenas for the case, indicating a wide range of expected testimony during the trial.
The Cazares family is among 21 families who have filed a civil lawsuit against the City of Uvalde over the shooting.
Former Uvalde CISD police chief Pete Arredondo is the only other officer indicted in connection with the response. He is awaiting a separate trial.
