Southwest
Former Uvalde school officer says he doesn’t regret actions after not guilty verdict
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A former Uvalde school police officer is speaking out after he was acquitted on all counts nearly four years after the shooting at Robb Elementary School that left 19 students and two teachers dead.
Adrian Gonzales, who was charged with 29 counts of child abandonment or endangerment tied to the shooting, said in his first interview since the acquittal that he has no regrets about the actions he took on May 24, 2022.
The jury deliberated for just seven hours before returning the verdict. Gonzales did not take the stand during the trial, while his attorneys brought up two witnesses.
JURY REACHES VERDICT IN TRIAL OF EX-UVALDE SCHOOL POLICE OFFICER ACCUSED OF FAILING TO CONFRONT GUNMAN
Former Uvalde school district police officer Adrian Gonzales leaves the courtroom during a break at the Nueces County Courthouse in Corpus Christi, Texas, on Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026. (Eric Gay/AP)
An investigation found that it took 77 minutes from the time authorities arrived at the scene until the tactical team breached a classroom and killed the shooter. Police faced criticism over their response in the years since the shooting.
“You can sit here and tell me all you want about what I would have done, or what you would have done. Until you’re in that mix, you can’t tell me anything,” Gonzales told ABC News.
Gonzales was the first on the scene at Robb Elementary School when 18-year-old Salvador Ramos carried out his deadly attack. The former school police officer told ABC News that he did not see Ramos and that he retreated from inside the school building because of an order from his commanding officer.
“I did the best that I could with the information I was getting,” he said, adding, “I don’t regret it, because I took an order from my chief at that time.”
Attorney Nico LaHood makes opening arguments during a trial for former Uvalde school district police officer Adrian Gonzales on Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026. (Eric Gay/AP)
UVALDE TRIAL HALTED AFTER KEY WITNESS CHANGES TESTIMONY
While he stands behind the actions he took during the shooting, Gonzales told ABC News that he understands that the victims’ families were frustrated with the verdict. He also said that he prays for the victims, their families and the community.
The 52-year-old former officer told ABC News that he believes he was selectively prosecuted, while others who arrived at the scene did not have their actions scrutinized.
“When the videos started playing, I realized that they handpicked me,” he told ABC News. “They had an excuse for everybody else. They did this, they did that, you know, but I had to do this, I had to do that.”
Former Uvalde school district police officer Adrian Gonzales, right, and his attorney Nico LaHood, left, arrive in the courtroom at the Nueces County Courthouse in Corpus Christi, Texas, on Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026. (Eric Gay/AP)
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After the verdict, Gonzales thanked God, his family, his legal team and the jury.
“First things first, I want to start by thanking God for this,” Gonzales said. “My family, my wife, and these guys right here. He put them in my path, you know? And I’m just thankful for that. Thank you to the jury for considering all the evidence and making their verdict.”
Former Uvalde Schools Police Chief Pete Arredondo was also criminally charged in relation to the 2022 shooting. He was charged with endangerment or abandonment of a child and has pleaded not guilty. A date for Arredondo’s trial has not yet been set.
The Associated Press contributed to this reporting.
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Los Angeles, Ca
Victims sought after man allegedly points gun at passing cars in Santa Clarita Valley
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department is asking for the public’s help finding witnesses after a man allegedly pointed a handgun at numerous passing cars in Castaic on June 18.
The man was allegedly seen pointing the gun at cars near Lake Hughes Road and Ridge Route Road between 6 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. The suspect was described as wearing a red shirt and black shorts.
Authorities provided a photo of the man seen running in the street while holding something in his left hand.
Anyone who may have witnessed the alleged assaults, is a victim of the incident or has information about the case is asked to call Detective Marinelli at (661) 260-4000 ext. 5618.
Los Angeles, Ca
Sweltering heat wave to grip Southern California next week
Southern California is enjoying a comfortable stretch of below-average temperatures that should continue through Father’s Day, but a strong heat wave is looming.
A significant warming trend will begin early next week before peaking Wednesday and Thursday, according to the National Weather Service.
“Another one of those ridges of high pressure is expected to build in, with temperatures really heating up,” KTLA’s Kirk Hawkins said. “We’re looking at temperatures reaching triple digits in parts of the High Desert and Inland Empire as well.”
An extreme heat watch has been issued for parts of Los Angeles County, including Woodland Hills, Pomona, Pasadena, Santa Clarita and other areas, from Tuesday morning through Thursday evening.
Temperatures in those areas could range from the upper 80s to 100 degrees.
The Weather Service suggested the following actions:
- Continue to monitor the latest forecasts, as the amount of heating is still uncertain
- Adjust plans now to stay cool next week
- Check in with elderly neighbors and family members to ensure they are aware of the hot forecast
The high-pressure system is expected to weaken on Thursday, bringing cooler temperatures as we head into next weekend.
Los Angeles, Ca
Armed, dangerous CHP pursuit suspect tied to double homicide in Pomona
A 48-year-old man who led law enforcement on a dangerous pursuit lasting more than an hour is in custody in connection with the shooting deaths of a man and a woman at an upscale Pomona apartment complex Thursday, police announced.
Officers with the Pomona Police Department responded to the Monterey Station Apartments, located at 180 E. Monterey Ave., near North Garey Avenue, just before 3:30 p.m. on reports of a shooting, according to a department news release.
Police, along with responding Los Angeles County firefighters, found the two victims in a fourth-floor apartment.
Paramedics immediately began life-saving measures, but both victims were ultimately declared dead at the scene, investigators said.
Neighbors told KTLA’s Mary Beth McDade that the suspected shooter, Robert Galtman of Pomona, shot his girlfriend and another resident of the apartment complex.
“He shot the girl, that was the girlfriend,” one woman, a resident of the building who did not want to give her name, told KTLA. “I know them because he had tried to hit on me and told me the situation that she was beating him up and that she cheated on him with this guy, the one that was killed.”
Authorities were searching Galtman, who was believed to be in dark-colored sedan that fled the apartments northbound on Towne Avenue near Holt Avenue.
Just before 5 p.m., officers with the California Highway Patrol spotted his vehicle traveling northbound on the 5 Freeway, officials confirmed to KTLA. When officers attempted a traffic stop, he failed to yield and led authorities on a high-speed pursuit that lasted more than an hour.
During the pursuit, he made a U-turn on the freeway and headed southbound before exiting in Castaic and taking Lake Hughes Road through the hills toward the Antelope Valley.
Sky5 was over the dangerous chase as Galtman was seen tossing unknown items from the vehicle, including some type of liquid, swerving dangerously onto the shoulder and refusing to stop as at least four CHP units followed closely behind.
He initially dodged several spike strips deployed by officers, at one point driving on the shoulder in Lancaster before clipping one of the strips with the vehicle’s left side, causing both tires to deflate.
Still refusing to stop, Galtman continued at about 30 mph until a CHP officer accelerated and performed a PIT maneuver that spun the vehicle and disabled it.
He was quickly surrounded by officers with guns drawn but did not immediately comply.
Following law enforcement commands, Galtman exited the vehicle, surrendered and was taken into custody.
The identities of the two victims are being withheld pending notification of next of kin.
Authorities have not released a motive in the deadly shooting. The investigation is ongoing, and anyone with information is asked to contact the Pomona Police Department’s Detective Bureau at 909-620-2085.
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