The school board in Uvalde, Texas has voted unanimously to fire the school district's police chief over his handling of the shooting rampage that killed 19 children and two teachers three months ago.
Lawyers for Chief Pete Arredondo said in a written statement that the school district had not carried out any type of investigation that should have led to his dismissal.
Chief Arredondo refused to attend the meeting about the future of his employment, saying he "does not believe the planned district meeting is safe" and is "not going to appear without exercising his state rights to be armed".
His lawyer defended the response to the Robb Elementary School massacre in a scathing letter released just before the school board met, saying Chief Arredondo "will not participate in his own illegal and unconstitutional public lynching" and demanded he be reinstated will backpay.
Local residents and families of victims attended the meeting, with some calling Chief Arredondo a "coward" for not attending.
State police and a damning investigative report released in July criticised the police chief of the roughly 4,000-student school district for failing to take charge of the scene, not breaching the classroom sooner and wasting time by looking for a key to a door that was likely not locked.
Chief Arredondo has been on administrative leave since June.
Classmate of slain students tells police 'turn in your badge'
Family members, friends, classmates and community members had the opportunity to speak in the public section of the meeting, and the names of each victim were read out to the crowd.
"If law enforcement's job is to protect and serve, why didn't they protect and serve my friends and teachers on May 24?" one young student asked the board.
"Turn in your badge and step down, you don't deserve to wear one."
Despite demands from families for the entire meeting to be open to the public, the board made the decision to fire Chief Arredondo behind closed doors.
"Do not take this into close sessions," a relative was filmed saying.
"We deserve to hear. Our babies are dead. Our teachers are dead. Our parents are dead. The least you all can do is show us the respect to do this in the public."
The meeting was held three months to the day after one of the deadliest school shootings in US history.
'No blame should be placed on Chief Arredondo', lawyer says
A blistering 17-page letter issued by Chief Arredondo's lawyer George Hyde, issued just minutes before the meeting was due to start, cited security concerns and accused the district of denying the officer the right to carry a weapon.
"Despite death threats being common knowledge, the School District has not disclosed any effort on its part to ensure the safety of Chief Arredondo, his legal counsel, or any of the public in attendance under such tense circumstances," the letter read.
"Without such steps, Chief Arredondo does not believe the planned district meeting is safe and is certainly not going to appear without exercising his state rights to be armed, unless the School District discloses in writing its safety protocol to ensure Chief Arredondo's life and the lives of those in attendance, including both the Board, its Superintendent, and the media."
Hyde said Chief Arredondo was a "courageous officer" who should be “celebrated for the lives saved, instead of vilified for those they couldn't reach in time.”
The letter claims that the situation "could have been different" if there were secure fences around the school grounds, and "if school employees did as they were told and kept their doors always locked during periods of instruction".
"Chief Arredondo will not participate in his own illegal and unconstitutional public lynching and respectfully requests the Board immediately reinstate him, with all backpay and benefits and close the complaint as unfounded," the statement says.
The grandfather of one of the young victims, Vincent Salazar, said the statement from Chief Arredondo's legal team was "a slap in our face" for grieving families.
"He doesn't deserve a job, he should be exiled from Uvalde for all I care," he told NBC's Top Story.
"I don't think the police chief wants to face this grandpa, because it would be horrible for me to run into Pete Arredondo.
"He didn't protect our children, he didn't protect our schools, he didn't protect the teachers, and he wants backpay? What would you call it? It's a big slap in the face."
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