A friend of Uvalde police chief Pete Arredondo said he 'can't understand why he wouldn't just resign'

• A friend of Uvalde police chief Pete Arredondo said he "can't understand" why he won't resign.
• Arredondo has been widely criticized for his response to the Robb Elementary School shooting in May.

Friends of the widely-criticized Uvalde police chief Pete Arredondo are puzzled by his decisions following the Robb Elementary School shooting that left 21 dead.

Jesse Rizo, an old friend of Arredondo's from their time together as students at Uvalde High School, told The Associated Press that his feelings for his friend have grown complicated following the shooting.

"I care about Pete. I care that he's mentally OK. I don't want a human to start to lose it," Rizo told The Associated Press. "But I also want to hold people accountable who don't perform their jobs properly."

"I can't understand why he wouldn't just resign," Rizo added of Arredondo, per the AP.

Arredondo was one of the first officers on the scene on May 24 when a teen gunman opened fire in a school classroom, killing 19 elementary students and two teachers.

Arredondo was blamed for deciding to wait over an hour for backup instead of confronting the shooter, who was ultimately killed by US Border Patrol officers. A preliminary report disclosed that a total of 376 law enforcement officers were at Robb Elementary while the gunman was at large for over 70 minutes.

Arredondo was placed on administrative leave from the school's police force in June and resigned from the city council shortly thereafter.

Rizo told the AP he still wants to see his friend fired from his policing position and for other officers to be held accountable for their lack of action.

"There are consequences to that," Rizo told the AP. In the days after the shooting, he said he texted Arredondo: "Please be strong and be patient."

"Good to hear from you, bro," Arredondo replied, per the AP. "Thank you and please keep praying for the babies."