The Texas Department of Public Safety has reinstated Texas Ranger Christopher Ryan Kindell, who the agency attempted to dismiss for his role in the controversial response to the Robb Elementary School Shooting in Uvalde on May 24, 2022.
DPS Director Steve McCraw announced the reinstatement in a letter on August 2, citing the end of the Texas Rangers’ criminal investigation and the review of the Uvalde grand jury’s findings.
McCraw’s decision follows a request from Uvalde County District Attorney Christina Mitchell, who emphasized the need for Kindell’s return to his duties.
“Ranger Kindell has worked diligently to serve the citizens of Uvalde County for approximately seven years and has been the lead investigator on several complicated cases, from child sexual abuse to murder cases. It was time that Ranger Kindell got back to work serving Uvalde County,” Mitchell stated via email, per KERA News.
Since January 2023, when Kindell was notified that he would likely be fired, he has continued to receive his annual salary of nearly $100,000 while on suspension.
No criminal charges were filed against any DPS officers, including Kindell. The grand jury did, however, indict two former Uvalde Consolidated Independent School District police officers on charges of child endangerment.
As previously reported by The Dallas Express, the Uvalde shooting was one of the deadliest school attacks in Texas’ history. A gunman killed 21 people, including 19 children and two teachers, in the tragic assault. The law enforcement response to the shooting was widely criticized, with officers waiting 77 minutes before confronting the gunman. The eventual confrontation came from a Border Patrol tactical unit.
Critics of Kindell’s reinstatement argue that the decision reflects a broader failure to hold law enforcement accountable.
“Not only is it sick and disgusting that he is reinstated…..Our f*****g D.A. REQUESTED IT! How much lower will any of these people go to spit on our faces!?!?” Brett Cross, whose son was among those killed, posted on X alongside the letter from McCraw.
The investigation revealed that 91 DPS officers, along with local police, U.S. Border Patrol members, and Uvalde school police, responded to the scene, per KERA. Despite numerous accounts of the delayed response, Kindell’s exact role and actions at the scene remain unclear.
In May, families of the Uvalde victims received a $2 million settlement from the city.