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Uvalde Victim’s Family Expresses Disappointment After Former Officer Acquitted in Child Endangerment Trial
UVALDE, TX – The family of Jackie Cazares, a 9-year-old victim of the tragic Robb Elementary School shooting, voiced profound disappointment and a sense of renewed failure on Wednesday night after a jury acquitted former school district police officer Adrian Gonzales on all 29 counts of child endangerment.
Javier Cazares, Jackie’s father, shared his heartbreak outside the courtroom. “We had a little hope, but it wasn’t enough,” Cazares stated, visibly shaken.
“Again, we are failed. I don’t even know what to say.”
He added that he had been “prepared for the worst” but still harbored hope for a different outcome. “I need to keep composed for my daughter.
It has been an emotional rollercoaster since day one. I am pissed,” he expressed.
Prosecutors had argued that Gonzales neglected his training and endangered the 19 students who died and an additional 10 who survived the May 24, 2022, mass shooting. However, Gonzales’s defense team contended that he was unfairly scapegoated for a broader systemic failure within law enforcement that day.
The verdict has ignited concerns about the message it sends to officers responding to future mass shooting incidents. Jesse Rizo, Jackie’s uncle, questioned the implications.
“I respect the jury’s decision, but what message does it send?” he asked reporters.
“If you’re an officer, you can simply stand by, stand down, stand idle, and not do anything and wait for everybody to be executed, killed, slaughtered, massacred.”
Julissa Rizo, Jackie’s aunt, directly challenged the defense’s assertion that Gonzales acted as best he could, telling ABC News, “That’s not true.” She continued, “There were two monsters on May 24. One was the shooter, and the other one was the one that never went in, that could have avoided this.”
Defense attorney Jason Goss, however, maintained that the acquittal vindicates Gonzales. “The evidence showed that not only did he not fail, but he put himself in great danger,” Goss affirmed. Gonzales himself told ABC News that he plans on “picking up the pieces and moving forward.”
Defense attorney Nico LaHood extended his prayers to the victims’ families, acknowledging their enduring grief. “We understand that their separation from their loved one is going to be felt as long as they walk on this earth, and we don’t ignore that.
We acknowledge that,” he said. “We’re just going to continue to pray for them.”
Javier Cazares confirmed his intention to attend the upcoming trial of former Uvalde Schools Police Chief Pete Arredondo. Arredondo, who served as the on-site commander during the Robb Elementary shooting, faces similar charges of endangerment or abandonment of a child and has pleaded not guilty.
His case remains indefinitely delayed due to an ongoing federal lawsuit, stemming from the U.S. Border Patrol’s refusal to allow Uvalde prosecutors to interview Border Patrol agents who responded to the incident, including those involved in neutralizing the gunman.