Judge Sid Harle denied a defense motion for a mistrial in the trial of former Uvalde school officer Adrian Gonzalez, finding prosecutors did not intentionally withhold witness information. Former teacher Stephanie Hale will undergo further cross-examination Thursday; the judge may later strike her testimony if it is found to be prejudicial. The defense contends Hale’s courtroom description of the shooter’s location contradicts earlier statements and undermined their trial preparation. Families of victims expressed disappointment after the disruption on the trial’s first day.
Judge Denies Mistrial Request After Disputed Witness Testimony in Uvalde Officer Trial
Special prosecutor Bill Turner confers with his team during the trial of former Uvalde school district police officer Adrian Gonzales at the Nueces County Courthouse in Corpus Christi, Texas, on Tuesday, January 6, 2026. - Eric Gay/Pool/AP
Judge Sid Harle on Wednesday denied a defense motion for a mistrial in the criminal trial of former Uvalde school district police officer Adrian Gonzalez, concluding prosecutors did not intentionally withhold witness information disclosed during the trial's opening day.
What Unfolded
Former Robb Elementary teacher Stephanie Hale returned to the stand on Thursday for additional cross-examination after testifying on Tuesday that she saw a person in black carrying a long weapon near a sidewalk as she and her students were running back into their classroom on May 24, 2022. The defense says that detail — which places the gunman in the same area where Gonzalez responded — contradicts Hale’s earlier statements to investigators and the grand jury and harmed the defense’s ability to prepare a detailed timeline.
Former Uvalde school district police officer Adrian Gonzales arrives at the Nueces County Courthouse in Corpus Christi, Texas, on Tuesday, January 6, 2026. - Eric Gay/Pool/AP
Defense Argument
Defense attorney Jason Goss argued that Hale’s courtroom description was materially different from statements she made in an interview with law enforcement four days after the shooting and to the grand jury. He said the prosecution’s failure to disclose that detail before trial amounted to a trial-by-ambush and warranted a mistrial or other significant remedies, because the defense planned to present a second-by-second timeline of Gonzalez’s actions and needed notice of any witness assertions that might place the shooter where Gonzalez was operating.
Judge’s Ruling
Judge Harle rejected the mistrial request, saying the district attorney’s office had been negligent but that the evidence did not show deliberate concealment. He told the court he did not believe Hale’s testimony, as given before the jury, so fundamentally altered the defense strategy as to justify ending the trial. Harle said he will decide after additional cross-examination whether to strike Hale’s testimony and instruct the jury to disregard it.
People pay their respects at a memorial dedicated to the 19 children and two adults killed on May 24, 2022, during the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School, on January 5, 2026, in Uvalde, Texas. - Brandon Bell/Getty Images
Reactions In And Outside The Courtroom
Relatives of victims attending the trial said the disruption and confusion were disheartening. Jesse Rizo, whose niece Jackie Cazares was among those killed, said families had hoped the prosecution would present a clear path to accountability and were discouraged by what he called a troubling “hiccup.” His brother Manuel Rizo criticized the defense team’s handling of the case.
Case Background
Gonzalez has pleaded not guilty to 29 counts of child endangerment and abandonment tied to the May 24, 2022 mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, in which two teachers and 19 children were killed. The case has drawn intense scrutiny of law enforcement response; Uvalde Consolidated Independent School District Police Chief Pete Arredondo was also indicted in connection with an alleged 77-minute delay in confronting the shooter and has pleaded not guilty. The trial is being held in Corpus Christi after a change-of-venue request.
Next Steps
The jury — composed of seven women and five men — was excused until Thursday morning. Hale will be further cross-examined, after which the judge will rule on whether her testimony should remain in the record. The court also discussed potential remedies for the alleged disclosure failure short of a mistrial.
“It was not intentional by the district attorney’s office. It was negligent,” Judge Harle said, noting the testimony did not appear to have so significantly affected strategy as to require a mistrial.
The proceedings continue to attract national attention as the trial examines the actions of school law enforcement during one of the deadliest school shootings in recent U.S. history.
Help us improve.
