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Robb Elementary School Principal Mandy Gutierrez was put on paid leave earlier this week by Uvalde CISD Superintendent Hal Harrell.
While Gutierrez's lawyer, Ricardo Cedillo, didn't disclose why the first-year principal was placed on administrative leave, he said she will "be responding to questions posed by Superintendent Harrell before the end of the week," according to the Texas Tribune.
An interim report from a state House committee investigating the May 24 attack, however, might give insight into the decision to place Gutierrez on leave.
The House committee found that Gutierrez, among others, were aware of a broken lock on Room 111 — the classroom the gunman entered and killed most of his victims, according to the Texas Tribune. Arnulfo Reyes, a teacher in Room 111 who was shot and wounded in the attack, reported the broken lock to school officials, but a work order was never prepared.
Furthermore, the report found that Gutierrez never tried to use the intercom system at Robb Elementary School to warn teachers there was a gunman inside the building. The principal said she used an app, Raptor, to try to initiate the lockdown, "but she had difficulty making the alert because of a bad WiFi signal," the report said. Reyes said he never got the alert from the app.
Gutierrez has been a Uvalde CISD employee for over 20 years, but this past school year was her first as principal at Robb Elementary School.
The news of Gutierrez's suspension comes weeks after Uvalde CISD police chief Pete Arredondo was also placed on administrative leave. Harrell recommended the firing of Arredondo, but the school board meeting to vote on his fate was canceled. Arredondo has been at the center of criticism regarding law enforcement's response to the May 24 attack, where 19 children and two teachers were killed.