The trial of a Uvalde school police officer accused of failing to protect the children during the 2022 attack by not doing enough to stop the gunman resumed on Thursday morning after the judge denied a motion for a mistrial.

Wednesday afternoon, Judge Sid Harle denied a motion for a mistrial in the Adrian Gonzales trial after the defense raised the possibility of a Brady violation brought on by statements made during a former Robb Elementary school teacher's testimony on Tuesday. Stephanie Hale, who was teaching at Robb Elementary the day of the attack, made statements during her testimony about the shooting that were not previously submitted into evidence to the defense.

Parts of Hale's remarks from the witness stand included that she saw a gunman wearing black approaching the school from an area near where Gonzales was. His attorneys said she had not disclosed that in previous witness interviews, and that it would be a key detail about the officer's location near the shooter.  

Disputed testimony sparks courtroom tension  

It prompted a jury pause and sparked arguments over whether jurors could now be biased. The judge agreed to consider arguments over Hale's testimony and the two sides argued the issue in open court on Wednesday without the jury present.

Defense attorney Jason Goss argued that the jury could not "unhear" the testimony once it was presented.

"She has already testified for the prosecution, and excluding it now without us being able to show that she was not accurate is problematic," Goss said. "We can't make them unhear what they heard."

Gonzales is charged with abandoning and endangering a child, accused of failing to act quickly during the shooting despite being in a position to see the gunman. His defense team maintains that the disputed testimony is inaccurate and misrepresents Gonzales' location and actions that day.

Judge says evidence issue was negligent, not intentional  

Harle said on Wednesday that the violation in evidence was "not intentional – more a case of negligence." 

"I don't believe what was given to the jury resonated enough to deter the defense strategy," said Harle.

Although the judge denied the mistrial, he agreed to allow the defense to further question the teacher and present her original interview with law enforcement. The defense will also have the option to ask that her testimony ultimately be excluded from the record.

Families voice frustration, demand answers  

The ruling sparked emotional reactions from victims' family members who were in the courtroom.

"If there was one word I could say about their team, it's incompetent," said Manuel Rizo, the uncle of one of the victims. "It's hard to remain positive."

Rizo said families are frustrated that nearly 3.5 years after the shooting, they still lack clear answers.

"Imagine three, 3.5 years that we've been going through this, and we still don't have all the facts," he said.

Despite the setback, Rizo said families are hoping the trial will finally bring clarity.

"We have a lot of anxiety. We're concerned, but we're hoping for the best," he said. "We believe the truth will always prevail. Sometimes you hit a speed bump, but you don't stop — you keep moving forward."

The trial will resume on Thursday.