Uvalde, Texas, site of the notorious 2022 school shooting at Robb Elementary in which police infamously refused to intervene, is reeling from a new political shock this week. Mayor Cody Smith, who rode to electoral victory in 2023 on his promised response to the shooting, has just resigned.
In his announcement, Smith explained that he has been suffering from unexpected medical problems, and the protracted recovery period will prevent him from properly doing his job. He expressed his thanks for the prayers and goodwill of the community as he faces these difficulties.
After the shooting, Kimberly Mata-Rubio (the mother of one of the murdered students) ran for mayor on a gun-control platform. Smith opposed her, vowing to take measures that, in his estimation, would be more effective.
Smiths’ resignation follows closely on the heels of Daniel Rodriguez, Chief of Police for Uvalde, who quit abruptly on March 12. Just a few days before that, a report commissioned by the city said that local police bore no fault with respect to its response to the Robb school shooting. Victimized families were livid at the city’s report, which went so far as to praise the response of the local police department.
This report contradicted the results of a Federal investigation into the same matter, which concluded that poor organization and a badly-organized command chain was responsible for the botched police response to the incident. On the fateful day, the school was surrounded by dozens of well-armed officers who prevented parents and other community members from entering the school to intervene in the ongoing executions of students that the gunman was holding in a classroom. The police, further, did not enter the school for an extended period, guaranteeing the gunman the latitude to kill nineteen elementary school-aged children.
Until new elections can be held this November, Evardo Zamora will serve as Mayor pro-Tem in Cody Smith’s stead, Smith said in his departing remarks.
