Texas reinstates trooper ousted after Uvalde school shooting probe

Texas’s Department of Public Safety (DPS) reinstated a state trooper this week who was suspended after the botched response to the Uvalde, Texas, school shooting in 2022.

DPS Director Col. Steve McCraw wrote to Texas Ranger Christopher Ryan Kindell, who was ousted following the shooting at Robb Elementary School, to inform the officer he removed the suspension status and restored his job, The Associated Press reported.

McCraw, in the letter dated Friday, said the local district attorney requested Kindell be able to return to his past position and said he had not been charged by the local grand jury tasked with investigating the shooting earlier this year.

In May 2022, an 18-year-old gunman entered the school and killed two teachers and 19 students and injured 17 others.

Several reports found the law enforcement response that day resulted in nearly 400 members of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies standing outside the elementary school for 77 minutes while the gunman was inside.

The Department of Justice released its findings in a scathing report.

Families of the victims renewed calls for police officers to face charges. Only two officers face criminal charges. Both have pleaded not guilty, according to CNN.

Since the shooting, Kindell and at least four others lost their jobs. Another officer retired and one resigned.

Kindell was initially suspended in January 2023 when a termination letter from McCraw said he did “not conform to department standards” and should have acted in an active shooter response, not one involving a barricaded person, the AP reported.

McCraw said he had been informed by Uvalde County District Attorney Christina Mitchell that a grand jury reviewed the actions of all officers and “no action was taken on officers employed by the Texas Department of Public Safety.”