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San Luis Obispo County Sheriffs Office Case Number 2006-04328
Interview of San Luis Obispo Police Department Officer Blake Etherton
Date and Time of Interview: July 7, 2020,1308 Hours
G: = San Luis Obispo County Sheriff's Office Detective Chad Guiton
L: = San Luis Obispo County Sheriffs Office Detective Trevor Lopes
E: = Officer Etherton
S: = Attorney Samantha Swanson, Adams Ferrone & Ferrone Law Firm
G: This is an Officer interview, case number 2006-04328. This is Detective Guiton. The date is
7/7/2020 and the time is 1308 hours. I'm with Detective Lopes and we're conducting an
interview in the Sheriff's Office Detective Conference Room in San Luis Obispo. The Officer
Etherton is being represented by Attorney...
S: Samantha Swanson.
G:... who is also present. We are conducting a criminal investigation into the events that
occurred on June 10`h and June 11 `h, 2020 in Paso Robles. This is a fact-finding investigation
into the events initiated by Mason James Lira. The interview is being audio recorded. A copy of
the investigation will later be provided to the San Luis Obispo District Attorney's Office and
your Department agency for review. Officer Etherton, has anyone ordered or compelled you to
be here today?
E: No.
G: Would you be willing to provide us with a voluntary statement?
E: Yes.
G: Okay. Have you had an opportunity to watch body worn camera, surveillance footage, radio
traffic prior to this interview?
E: Yes.
G: Okay. Do you want any more time or you, have had ample opportunity to do that?
E: I'm good.
G: Okay. If I could just get some background information on you, can you spell you first and
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last name for me please?
E: Yes. My first name's Blake, B L A K E. My last name is Etherton, E T H E R T O N.
G: Okay. And how old are you?
E: Thirty-four years old.
G: And what is your current rank and agency that you work for?
E: My current rank is Officer, and I currently work for the City of San Luis Obispo.
G: And do you know your hire date or approximately how long you've been on?
E: Uh, for the City of San Luis Obispo, it should be right around January 7th of 2014.
I G: And do you have prior Law Enforcement experience?
I E: Yes.
I G: And where would that have been?
I E: I worked for Riverside County Sheriff s Department in July of 2012.
G: Okay. What's your current station assignment or patrol assignment if, if you have one?
E: I am currently assigned to the downtown bicycle patrol position.
G: Okay. And what is your normal duty hours and shift assignment?
E: My normal duty hours are Monday through Thursday from 0700 to 1700 hours.
G: Okay. And do you have an assigned Call Sign?
E: Yes. I'm forty two thirty one.
G: Okay. And during the incident on June 101h and June 11 th, were you assigned to that detail or
did you have another detail that you were assigned to?
E: On June 1 Oth I would have been assigned to that detail but instead I was assigned to my, um,
auxiliary duties of being on the SWAT Team.
G: Okay. And, can you describe to me how you were dispatched or responded to Paso Robles on
June 10th and what information you received, uh, during your response and when you arrived?
E: Uh, I was woken up via me telephone. Uh, I received multiple messages and phone calls, um,
through our team sharing App. We have a thing called Team Snap that alerts us to a call out.
Uh, while I was in route to the station, I started um, reaching out to our Dispatchers for more
information.
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G: Okay. And what information did you receive?
E: They told me there was a subject in Paso Robles near the station that was currently shooting
rounds at their Police Department and were activating our SWAT Team. And an Officer
r y �
had been shot in the face.
G: Okay. What'd you do next?
E: I made my way to the Police Department, uh, got my SWAT gear ready, and I got in our
SWAT vehicle, Unit fifteen o seven, and drove north to, uh, Paso Robles. While I was doing
that, I notified who, from what I was told, the Command Post
G: Okay. And, I assume you went to the Command Post at that point?
E: I did go to the Command Post.
G: And what did you learn at the Command Post or did you get an assignment at that point?
E: At the Command Post, I uh, I learned that, he had been shooting at the, at the Police
Department, and that they estimated that he had a nine millimeter, a thirty eight, and forty mill,
uh forty millimeter gun. And the Deputy, it turned out that it was a Deputy not an Officer that
had been shot. And that Deputy was at Sierra Vista being treated by, uh, Dr. Cater, who is our
SWAT Team Medic. And he was giving us updates about his condition and, as far as I knew he
was in critical care.
G: Okay.
E: Um, at the Command Post, uh, we have on our SWAT Team, assignments that are kinda pre-
determined so you have an idea of the work that you can start doing. So uh, when I was there I
started preparing the SWAT Team's equipment, getting it ready, having it, um, staged for us to
be able to grab when we were given an assignment by our Command Staff. And I reached out to
other SWAT Operators that we had not heard from yet.
I G: Okay. And did you eventually get an assignment?
I E: I eventually did.
G: And what would that have been?
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E: I was assigned to the Green Team, in the four position, which we call our intel position.
G: And, what'd you guys do as the Green Team?
E: As a Green Team we started coordinating, um, our plan and working together on information.
I, spoke with Officer Benedetti when he showed up on scene because he initially responded that
night and could provide me with, I thought would be more details, of the situation, which he
didn't have anything new for me but I still pass it on to my team. And then I relayed, uh, what I
believe to be critical information to our team leader, that, on Tuesday, the day prior, at about one
o clock in the afternoon, I took a stolen, um, firearms report, from downtown SLO. And, at the
time, we still believe that there were, or at least I still believe that there was thirty eighty, forty,
and nine, both of the, all three of those calibers had been reported stolen to me.
G: Okay. And those are the calibers that you mentioned were believed to be with the subject?
E: Yes.
G: Okay.
E: And then we got updated information, I don't know from who but uh, that it was uh, a
Hispanic male adult, uh, average build and average height.
G: Okay. And, what happened after that?
E: Uh, after that, um, our team leader, Kemp, came back and told us what our portion of the
game plan would be, which was to go down Riverside toward I0`h Street and then the Blue Team
was also gonna go with us and same with the SED Team. And our three teams were gonna clear
from like the railroad tracks, west, towards the downtown park, through the different buildings,
and different crevasses and what not.
G: Okay. And did you end up performing those searches of that area?
E: Yes.
G: Did you learn any additional information or make any observations when you were doing
such?
E: Uh, yes while we were searching I learned that there was a homeless individual that appeared
to have been executed from behind. Um, with cash in his hand. To me when I saw the, the
photo that was sent out to us, it looked like the person had been executed and it started as a
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robbery but the person wasn't actually interested in the money, but rather in killing someone
else.
G: Okay. And how long did you continue your searching that day?
E: Uh, it seemed like we were out there for several hours.
G: Okay. When you were doing your searches did you make any other observations or learn any
additional information?
E: Yes, in front of, um, Western Janitorial, uh, we located a shell casing on the ground.
G: Okay.
E: Which I looked at and looked and saw that it was a forty millimeter.
G: Forty caliber?
E: Forty caliber, sorry. Not forty millimeter.
G: Okay.
E: That's a big difference.
G: Okay. And, any additional information gained that day?
E: Yes when we continued our search, uh, we were told by one of our teams, `cause we branched
our Green Team, tactically into different moments, into different uh cell elements to clear
different things. One of our cell elements told us there's a, uh, an alleyway just past, or just next
to Goodwill, you can see the, library's, uh, parking lot. Um, there was a handful of casings on
the ground there as well.
G: Okay. And after you performed the searching downtown, did you get another assignment, did
you go back to the Command Post, what happened next?
E: Uh, then after we were sent there, we were sent back over to uh, the other side where SED
Team had come through and someone had reported saying that they saw shell casings on the
ground. We searched that area as well and we didn't locate any over there. Um, which would be
next to uh, I think it's Bistro Laurent.
G: Okay.
E: Right there on the corner, so.
G: And, anything else...
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I E: Which is Pine Street.
I G:... that happened downtown or did...
E: No we just searched the area and then, uh, we eventually cleared. While I was searching
downtown I was working the intel portion for my team so I was tryin to get more information.
We had gotten information that he had been seen by the security guard several hours earlier and
that he was asking questions like, um, you know are there any back doors, is there an alleyway,
are there cameras... things that, uh, kinda heightened our awareness that he was looking for,
possibly another escape route. I was also working, based on the physical descriptors, um, there
was a photo that was sent out that we couldn't quite see his face in. I thought it was a different
subject that I've had dealings with that was a little bit younger but still kinda matched the
Physical descriptors and it, um, so I, I reached out to our Detective Bureau and had them start
working that angle, but it turns out it was, not that person.
G: Okay. So you saw a photograph of the potential subject but he was not positively identified, -
that point...
E: Correct.
G:... is that correct? Okay. And after that what, what'd you guys do next?
E: Uh we made our way back to the Command Post where we were, uh, reassigned to the
to wait.
G: Okay. And after waiting at the skybox was there another assignment given? Did you go
home, or...
E: Uh we were ordered to go home, go get rest, and to be potentially ready for another call out,
they were anticipating stuff. Before going home, back to San Luis anyways, I went and saw
probably fifteen twenty minutes or so, so.
G: Okay. .. did you go home or...
E: I drove back to the station, um, downloaded my gear that I had, and then went uh, back to the
house and relaxed for a little bit and, I told uh, one of our Dispatchers who I knew would be
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working, and she's also a tactical Dispatcher for our SWAT Team I told her hey, let me know if,
um, it looks like they're gonna give us a Call Out but do not call me or text me `cause I will hav(
my phone on unless you think it's imminent, even if there are shots fires, we still may not get
called it might take a while so please do not call me immediately so I can get rest.
G: Okay. Did you ultimately get a phone call or a text back?
E: I did. So I probably went to sleep around eight or nine o'clock in the evening and uh, I
eventually got a text message around, ten o clock from her tellin me that there were shots fired it
Paso and that it seemed, it seemed like just about every hour on the hour until about three A M
when I finally was activated.
G: And this would be three A M on June 11 `h is that correct?
E: That's correct.
G: Okay. And, you were activated at three A M then?
E: Yes.
G: Okay. Can you describe to me what your uniform was on June I I th and when you activated
what you brought with you?
E: Yes so I responded with our tactical tradewear that we have as a, a team. But I was wearing
black Ultima marine boots. I was wearing, uh black socks and then I had a black camo cargo
pants, I think it's True Spec, and then the same thing on the, the top uh cargo based uniform with
black camo on the outside and then, uh, a cotton fabric on an interior for wear, underneath our,
uh vest goes. I had shoulder patches that said San Luis Obispo Regional SWAT Team. And
then I was wearing, on my belt, for the SWAT Team on my hips, I had a black camo, uh, belt.
On the front I had a tourniquet and then I had my gun, a utility knife behind my uh gun, and then
I had a dump pouch, and then I have a flashlight, a clip to attach other items like a, a drop holster
for a bag like a, um, gas mask or something like that, just a utility clip. And then I have uh, two,
I'm sorry, then I have a thirty round magazine that's clear but holds, I put, load with twenty eight
green tip, uh, rounds on my belt. And then I have two handgun magazines on my belt. And then
for my, uh vest that I brought with me, my outer carrier vest, I use a First Spear vest that has
Police on the front in white and Police on the back for identifying markers. I have a medical
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pouch that's identified with a cross and underneath the medical pouch is secondary tourniquet.
And then I have my, uh, three, twenty-eight round magazines that hold thirty, hex mags, they're
black. Uh, and then I have two flash bangs on the front of that as well. And then another utility
patch up front and the utility patch I have glasses, ear pros, uh, I had at the time two, uh, protein
bars, a door stop, and a, a pole that I can extend for my phone to use for like, checkin around
corners like uh, a mirror if you will but with a cell phone. And then, I have another utility poucl
on the side that holds uh more ear pros, more door stops and more, uh, eye pros. On the back I
have a rope that's about twenty feet long, on my back that's in a pouch and then I have a pouch
for my gas mask which was also in the back and then I have a radio with the radio attachment.
And I have a bungee cord to hold, uh, things close to my chest. I also, uh, had handcuffs on my
utility belt for arrests. And then I have a helmet, with my name on the back of the helmet.
G: Okay. And what was your side arm?
E: Uh, I was carrying a Glock seventeen.
G: Okay. And what caliber is that?
E: Nine millimeter.
G: Do you have extra nine millimeter magazines on your belt too?
E: Just the two that are on my belt and then the one in the magazine. Seventeen round magazi
I with one in the chamber.
I G: So you responded with that gear, that's what you were wearin that day, is that accurate?
I E: Yes.
G: And, where did you respond to?
E: Uh we responded back to the same Command Post location at the Fairgrounds.
G: Okay. And did you get an assignment at that point?
E: Uh yes. I was, again, going to be the Green four intel position.
G: Okay. And who was the team leader or Supervisor for Green Team?
E: Uh that'd be Caleb Kemp.
G: Okay. And, was it a set group of teammates that was assigned to you at that point in the
morning or did you add or lose guys throughout the day?
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1 I I E: Both.
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G: Okay. Um, do you remember who your partners were that day?
E: So we started off the day with, uh, Juan Leon, Greg Benson, Caleb Kemp, myself, Reggie
Bio, Eric Jimenez, Joshua Bywater, Marsella Magana, Dustin Virgil, and Joe Gonzalez, and Tin
Ramirez.
G: Okay. Are...
E: I'm sorry Eric Jimenez was assigned to us in that morning portion but quickly got reassigned
to the FBI team but went with us in the Bearcat when we deployed.
G: Okay so that's my next question. You said the Bearcat. Were you guys in Patrol Units, the
Bearcat, like a combination of both...
E: We were in the, the SLO PD, or the SLO Regional's Bearcat.
G: And can you describe what the Bearcat looks like?
E: Uh yeah it's a Lenco, it's dark grey, it has the San Luis Obispo Regional SWAT Team and
Police identifying markers on it. Uh, it's a very large armored vehicle.
G: Okay. And was there a designated driver or spots that people sit in this vehicle?
E: The designated driver was Tim Ramirez.
G: Okay.
E: The team leader typically sits in the front passenger seat. But there's no assigned seating. As
we try to, uh, get in the vehicle in reverse order so that the one, twos, threes, fours, lets the high(
numbered people come out of the doors first.
G: Okay.
E: So, the back half of the team would usually get in the Bearcat first.
G: Okay. And when you got to the Command Post did you get an assignment or any additional
briefing information?
E: I got additional information about our suspect. They now had better photos, uh, they now
identified our suspect as a, a, they believe it to be Mason Lira and they had a bunch more
information on him
G: Okay. And you say a bunch more information. Anything pertinent that stood out to you?
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E: Well he was, uh, believed to be the suspect in, my, burglary report that I'd taken two days
prior. He was also identified as a person that assaulted a bus driver downtown SLO on Monday
which I was, I took the initial, um from the RTA bus driver as well. While I was busy dealing
with a protest. Um, and so they started givin us more background information about his criminal
history and how, specifically on, it seems like public transit systems that he had severe issues
with and that he had done this, similar things. The information that I received was that he had
done something similar in Oregon and something similar in the valley.
G: Okay. And, did you get an assignment?
E: Yes I was assigned to the, uh, intel team. Or, intel position of my team. And then our
assignment was to go, as a team if that's what your asking for. It was to go relieve the SED
Team.
G: SED being the Sheriff's SWAT Team?
E: Yes.
G: Okay and did you guys go relieve them?
E: We did. We drove over to Ramada and relieved them.
G: Do you remember where on Ramada they were, where you guys responded to?
E: Uh, I don't know the exact business but we were, I think it's, um, it was right off of 46 and
Ramada so it was like a quarter of a mile south of probably 46 at the furthest.
G: Okay. And you relieved them, was there an assignment give to you or a plan made to do
something at that point?
E: Our plan was to go down farther, uh back where they had originally been and we were gonna
go stage and, and wait for further assignments from the Command Post. There was a field that
went up next to, um, the Salinas riverbed, and there was a nice ridgeline there, the tru..train
tracks, we had a, a lot of visual horizon that we could see south but then also kinda check, uh,
some of the little outhouse buildings that were right there. There was one particular outhouse
building that we pulled up to and we cleared and then we checked the riverbed that was right
there and we were waiting, um, backed up along the riverbed waiting for an assignment.
G: Okay. And did that assignment eventually come?
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E: Well before that we actually made contact with a transient that had just come down the, the
pathway and we... shouted out to him `cause he matched our general description of our suspect.
So we called out to him and he came and he met with me. And while speaking with him, I
discovered that he had already been debriefed by the FBI Team and our other teams. But he wa
in, um, Chevron when the subject had been inside Chevron and was looking to buy food and wa
very frantic and, uh, he started saying that he was very very sweaty and he was giving me
clothing descriptions, that he was wearing a light colored, um, shirt or sweatshirt that was
completely covered in foxtails, specifically on the back, uh, he was wearing jeans, and boots, an
his hair was very disheveled and he just looked very frantic and tired and that he was trying to
get energy drinks and then he just ... took off and then after he took off, a few moments later he
heard a bunch of gunshots, behind in the creekbed area.
G: Okay.
E: So that would be where Chevron was on, uh, Ramada.
G: And were you made aware of any other photographs or had you seen any other additional
information up to that point?
E: I had seen photos at that point.
G: Do you recall where those photos were from?
E: I don't recall.
G: Okay. And... what happened next?
E: And then we received information that a sea crate, uh, further south of our position, probably
about a mile or so. Um, which was normally latched shut was actually unlatched and somewhat
open, and a Deputy was standing by, uh, waiting for a team to clear it so we were sent to go clear
it with, uh, Kings County canine.
G: Okay. Anything found?
E: Nothing was located.
G: Okay. And what'd you guys do next?
E: Uh next we continued clearing some outhouses, um, some abandoned properties, we were
checking those, and uh, the only thing we found were snakes, and bees. Angry bees.
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G: Okay.
E: And then we went to a lumber yard that had an outdoor barn where they stow their large
equipment, like trailers and tractors and we stationed there.
G: Okay. After stationing at the lumber yard, did you go elsewhere, did you get new
information, did you learn anything else?
E: Uh we just kinda kept getting information, we started seeing, uh, the information is starting to
become much more public and you know however news articles about him and, and things that
were out there so we were just trying to gather as much intel as we could and speaking to our
different team leaders trying to verify what was accurate information and what was just
conjecture.
G: Okay. And as the intel guy, you're receiving a lot of that information is that correct?
E: I am. That's correct.
G: And, do you relay that information to your team or what's your objective or...
E: Yes.
G:... job?
E: My objective is to relay that to our, uh, team leader.
G: Okay.
E: Antyhing that he needs to know that's new or pertinent.
G: Okay. And were you doing so?
E: I was.
G: Okay. And what happened next?
E: Uh next we moved to C & N Tractor and we stationed at C & N Tractor waiting. Uh we
heard intel that there was gonna be searching for the next thirty to forty five minutes, that they
were gonna allow some more searching but that there were now a bunch of, uh, SWAT Teams in
the area, and that they were gonna come up for a plan for us to, basically sweep the riverbed for
him.
G: Okay.
E: And then, we heard on the radio that a team was, had located a campsite with some
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information that they were working that problem so we were just, um, kinda waiting for
something to be assigned something or go somewhere, so something. So that's why we were
waiting.
G: So after waiting there did you get an assignment or did you go elsewhere?
E: Um while we were waiting there, uh, we heard on the radio, shots fired, and so we all got into
our Bearcat and started moving, in our Bearcat, towards the main road but still kinda waiting for
direction `cause we, at this point didn't really know, um, and then as we're driving, we're getting
information, I don't know where the information's coming from but we're headed northbound on
Ramada, told, towards Volpi Ysabel or something. And as we're about to pass Volpi Ysabel,
someone said you guys need to turn on Volpi Ysabel or something so we kinda had to slam on
the brakes and then turn and go down Volpi Ysabel. Once we turned on Volpi Ysabel, our
direction of travel became much clearer to us because we heard a lot of gunfire to our northeast
position from where we were at on Volpi.
G: Okay. Do you remember where you were on Volpi Ysabel when you started hearing the
gunfire?
E: (Sighs). We were probably two hundred yards east of Ramada.
G: Okay. And what'd you guys do after you heard the gunfire?
E: Um we started moving towards the gunfire using our Bearcat and our, our tactics to find the
location. Um, our team leader was relaying information or trying to get information about
exactly where to go. We didn't want to just, run full bore in there with our heads cut off, we
I were, we had a tactical plan, we knew, um, as much as that we wanted to help our other team, we
I knew our other team was doing their job and so we needed to kinda get there but we need to get
there safely and, um, we were trying to, talk about the plan amongst ourselves about different
ways that he's coming. We had a bunch of construction workers quickly leaving the cement
yard. Um, and so we were trying to gather information from them if they saw him, uh, because
at this point, we had no known location other than the northeast from our position.
G: And where's the cement yard in relation to Vopli Ysabel and Ramada?
E: Uh, it would be east. And north I guess, it goes, starts on Volpi, it seems like it starts on
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Volpi Ysabel and goes north from there and then east almost all the way to the train tracks.
G: Okay. So it was an occupied construction yard?
E: Yes.
G: Okay. And, can you elaborate on what your tactical plan was at that point?
E: Our tactical plan was the same that was initiated at the beginning of the day, that we were
going to peacefully bring a, about a resolve to this iss...uh situation as best as we possibly could.
Our mission, our objective was to stop him as peacefully as possible. So our goal was to, from
that we moved forward, trying to bring him into custody.
G: Okay. And where did you guys move forward to?
E: Um, well it was kind of a, a long process to get there but we ended up in the uh most north
and most east position I think of the cement yard.
G: Okay. And were you on foot or in the Bearcat?
E: Uh we were on foot. We were, using the Bearcat as cover, uh, several times we were, um, on
different sides of the Bearcat, different teams, different cells on different sides of the Bearcat.
As we moved forward, like I said we, uh, we no longer knew where the suspect was. We could
hear radio traffic and I could see a helicopter saying he's underneath this tree as he's circling it.
However he was circling probably like three hundred trees from our position. So, we couldn't
quite understand what he was sayin, then we heard that the suspect was in the northeast portion
of that cement yard and when we got there, there was a lot of tactical issues that we needed to,
um, slowly work our way through so, we started workin our way through it and we got to, um,
like an office building and we stopped at the office building at which point we saw a group of
unknown Officers and Deputies and whoever else, some were plain clothes, start clearing that
and then they pushed past us, uh, while we were stopped for a moment, trying to figure out
where we were needed and where to hold our perimeter line. Um, then we went down, there was
a road that we took down, I don't know what the road was, and it led us into a big, pile of
different types of cement base or D G base, or sand and all sorts of different stuff with trucks
everywhere. Truck doors open and um people leaving the area, we were warning people to get
out. And then, um, as we were coming through this little rock area there on the picture, um, it
[Summary of pleading) - 14
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kinda had, uh, there was three ways to go around it. And so we took the most northern portion
and the center portion, um, to clear it. Later on we would go back and do a perimeter switch,
sweep of the area but, that's what we did, we took it that way. The Bearcat went on the northerr
portion of it and I took the center portion with a handful of people, til we made it to that corner
over there in what's being called I guess the high ground.
G: So the picture you're referring to is image zero zero eight and it depicts an overhead view ani
there's a Bearcat in the northeast corner of what looks to be a concrete yard. Uh there's a
vineyard north of that concrete yard. Uh does that reasonably reflect what you recall that area
looking like?
E: Yes.
G: Okay. And is that, positioning of that Bearcat roughly where it was, where you guys parked i
did you guys move around several times, or do you recall?
E: Yeah that's pretty much where we parked it.
G: Okay. And at that point, what happened next?
E: Uh, at that point that we parked it, um, we could see, uh, our team and a, and the Bearcat
which I recognized to be the um SED's Bearcat. Uh it's black with SED, or Sheriff logos on it
that are distinct to me, um, anyways it was further south of our position and so we as a team were
unsure of where the suspect was. The best intel information that we had, um, when we looked at
the situation, um was, there was like a gulley or ravine that was directly east from our position
facing where the Bearcat was, that we believe that the suspect was in that location but we were
still um unsure and like I said we had information that he could have ran into the construction
yard. So we took up four to five positions in that area, trying to maintain our three hundred and
sixty degree coverage around our Bearcat but we, um, had some more people with us than what
we were used to dealing with, the team that had pushed past us had somehow come out form the
tree that was directly underneath us. And even though there was portions of time where we
thought the suspect might be in that tree but, area, but it didn't make sense because of the little
bit of visibility that we had, urn...
G: Can you direct...
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E: Yeah.
G:... directional...
E: So...
G:... you're referring to the tree (unintelligible)...
E:... this is the tree right here that we initially thought that it was which was right in front of
where the Bearcat was.
G: So it'd just be the eas
t st of where the Bearcat was.
E: Just to the northeast of us, like, it was, I don't know, fifteen yards from us. But, we thought,
after we've come up that the suspect had actually been down in this tree line area down here.
G: On the east side of the railroad tracks.
E: On the east side...
G: By the riverbed?
E:... of the railroad tracks. By the riverbed.
G: Okay.
E: So this is where most of our focus was. Um...
G: Where did that other team emerge from?
E: They came up, from this embankment right here where that tree was. They came up and
joined us right there.
G: Okay.
E: So they kinda cleared that little area and um, uh, Joe Leonard, Sergeant Joe Leonard from
Paso PD who's one of our snipers, told me that the had checked that tree area. So we kinda P Y ,
we were like okay well, if they already checked it then, we should assume for the most part, that
it's clear but we were still just, unsure and still prepared for that area. Um, then we lined up for
the most part the team lined up. There was a ridge around this whole area right here that
provided a, concealment for some of the team members. So we had some of the team members
up there and then we were, I was sitting there, trying to get information, trying to relay back to
our Command Post but we had... a lot of people talking on the radio so we were unable to get
some traffic out, um, that we as a team tactically thought that we needed to do. Turned out later
[Summary of pleading] - 16
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to be true but that's okay.
G: What communication channel were you on, do you recall?
E: We were on Paso Robles.
G: Okay. Would that be Paso Robles Green channel?
E: Yeah, Paso Robles Green channel.
G: Okay. And, not to back you up but when you responded you heard the shots fired call, did
you learn any other information when that call came out?
E: Uh, prior to that...
G: About who put the call out or what the reasoning was for them saying that. You mentioned
you'd been on Ramada driving, you heard gunshots and prior to that...
E: Oh yes.
G:... you were responding.
E: Yeah I heard, uh, Sergeant Smiley, from the Blue Team, uh, put out shots fired.
G: Okay. Any other information that was relayed...
E: Yes...
G:... from him?
E: ...he also relayed that he had been shot in the leg. It was a through and through and that he
had applied a tourniquet.
G: Okay. Sorry to...
E: It's okay.
G:...take you off track there. So you're in this position, you've described the team being
positioned on a eastern and northern perimeter on both sides of the Bearcat is the way I
understood you. Another team has joined you, which would be this team of various Law
Enforcement Officers...
E: Yes.
G:... not a SWAT Team?
E: Not a SWAT Team.
G: Okay.
[Summary of pleading] - 17
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E: There were SWAT Team members, but not a SWAT Team.
G: Okay. And then, if I understood you correctly you're having communication issues getting
out to the Command Post?
E: Command Post, there just, there was just a lot of, traffic, a lot of people trying to set
perimeters, trying to, it was a big problem, you know, trying to make it small and, um, it just
becomes difficult to, um, talk when you only have one ability to talk.
G: Okay. At your position, are any other tactical plans being discussed?
E: Uh, yes. Um, I spoke to uh, Sergeant Kemp our team leader, and I told him that, the,
construction cement area just behind us, where all those rocks were, was unchecked, and
potential that the suspect could be there and so we discussed doing a secondary inner perimeter
search. So we did that with a small cell unit while we cleared the area. Um, and then we came
back and I relayed the information to Sergeant Kemp that the area was probably about ninety
percent clear.
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E: Because we were moving quickly. Um, and then we had another problem. I was advised of a
porta potty that because my team had been separated, um, we worked in two different cells. The
other half told me that the, was a porta potty just behind us, to the west of our Bearcat that was
unsecured. So we made the decision to search that porta potty and then we cleared it and
confirmed that it was clear.
G: Okay. And were there any additional personnel deployed or stationed anywhere in that yard
at that time that you're aware of:
E: Not at that time.
G: Okay. Part of the planning, was there any designated shooters?
E: No.
G: Okay. Any designated spotters?
E: No.
G: Did your unit have any less lethal capabilities?
E: Yes.
[Summary of pleading] - 18
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G: And do you recall what those were?
E: Yes we had our, um, verbal commands, our de-escalation, our command presence, uh our
pepper spray, I forgot to mention I had pepper spray on my vest as well. Um, we had a forty
millimeter baton rounds as well.
G: Okay.
E: And gas.
G: Okay so that'd be like chemical munitions, gas...
E: Chemical munitions yeah.
G: Did you guys have a canine unit with your team?
E: Not at that time. We had one with us and then they had to, um, I don't know go home or
something.
G: And at this point can you describe the, weather if you will, lighting conditions, terrain...
E: Yes it was very bright and it was very hot. Uh there was a, a some gusty winds though that
were going from south to north at about ten to fifteen miles an hour intermittently.
G: Okay. And what is to the north of your position there?
E: Uh there was a vineyard that I could see, I could see a, kinda northwest, there was a, a house,
what appeared to be a house anyways, uh to the northwest of us, um, like I said it was vineyards,
and trees, and then there was a road, like a, a dirt cut roadway for what looked like to be uh,
access for vehicles for the vineyard, and train tracks.
G: What's due west of your position?
E: Uh due west of my position is Ramada, uh, Drive and the 101 which is, uh, very populated at
that time of day.
G: Okay. And, so you, you're at this northeast position and what happened next?
E: Uh, northeast position, um, what happened next is, I started noticing, or, I started to relay
information back to our Command Post, trying to get better intel, um, about where the suspect
was. We were trying to get where our other team's Bearcat had moved because our team, which
was using the SED's Bearcat had moved north along the railroad tracks, which we assumed was
they were trying to take the northern portion of the perimeter. Um, and then, as we're tryin to
[Summary of pleading] - 19
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work those problems, we're identifying, uh, people in the riverbed, and we're seeing different
people in the riverbed. So, we start working on plans to get better visuals because from our
distance, none of us had the capability to see that far, I mean I think we were seeing people as far
as three, four hundred yards away. So, I spoke to, um, Sergeant Leonard about takin another
position away from the Bearcat, so he, we could use more of his magnified scope as a visual to
help us. We saw people that were working towards the most eathern, eastern perimeter line and
so we were able to use that to identify, uh, friendlies in the area.
G: Friendlies being...
E: Other Law Enforcement Officers, there was, um, a lot of plain clothes people in the area.
G: Okay. And what happened next?
E: Uh... oh um, then I finally, uh, I don't know finally uh I, uh, started talkin to Sergenat Kemp
about having, starting to do overwatch positions so, uh, Sergeant Leonard was pushed up into
this rock pile with uh, Joshua Bywater, um, to help him. And then I moved, or I told three
people that were there to move, or a group of them anyways, to move, backwards, west to, what
would be more like a, it looked more like sand to me, and I told em to go take up a position over
there in case the suspect actually came up out of this ridge, um, so that way we had more of a
perimeter or at least visual of this area to prevent any, anyone from escaping that way, which
would be west.
G: Okay. And you describe the rockpile with Sergeant Leonard, is that the rockpile southwest <
the Bearcat position in that photo?
E: Yes.
G: And I see a sandpile about due west, is that look like the sandpile that they went to?
E: Yes.
G: Okay. Did these Officers take those positions?
E: As far as I know.
G: Okay. And, what happened after that?
E: After that we received some information that there was movement in the tree lines, some dirt
' being moved, being seen moved. They were unable to, um, identify what was happening but it
[Summary of pleading] - 20
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looked that it was happening there and the information came that it was going, uh, basically
directly north of our position along that ridge. There was a set of trees. So, um, that was the
intel so, I was, at the back of the Bearcat, I heard the information and so I went up to what wout
be a cement, short cement wall about four feet tall maybe three and a half feet tall, and I took up
a position there, uh, while the radio traffic was coming assuming that we were gonna have
movement coming down that embankment.
G: Is that embankment the one between the railroad tracks and the vineyard?
E: Yes.
G: Okay. And what did you hear or see after that?
E: Uh, while I was waiting, um, to see, I, I felt and saw uh different team members, um, kinda
come around me and re -position themselves to be able to, uh, take this person into custody. Um
but then I heard, what I thought, and I, I haven't, I don't know if this is what happened or not
but I heard, what I thought was uh, Sergeant Leonard yelling at me, what's going on over there
or something similar to that effect. And so being that I knew that he had, um, an enhanced scope
that he would be able to see more, be able to relay information to us better, I got up and ran to hi
position as a Bearcat was coming towards me, a brown Bearcat. I had no idea whose Bearcat it
was, um, but it was identified with police markers I just wasn't paying attention to exactly whose
markings they were, and I yelled for, um, Sergeant, um, Leonard to look north of our position
and when I noticed that he was doing that I turned back around and, when, uh, back towards my
location.
G: Okay. My location being the...
E: The original...
G:... cement?
E: ...yeah the cement. I ran and I ended up being just west of the Bearcat I never quite, I did
make my way back to the cement block but not initially, it was a process to get there.
G: Okay. So in that process to get there you're just west of the Bearcat, and what, what
transpired?
E: Um, I saw a subject who matched our physical descriptors. I quickly identified that he was
[Summary of pleading] - 21
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wearing jeans and a, a lighter shirt or sweatshirt or, long sleeve thing, and his hair was really
disheveled and he looked like he had some facial hair which looked exactly like the surveillance
video I'd seen before. And then I saw a glimmer, or a shining effect in this right hand and based
on the sun and my training and experience of being a firearms instructor and having seen that
glint of the sun beating off of a silver, uh, revolver, I immediately recognized that as one of the
weapons. And again due to my previous knowledge of, uh, firearms having stolen and then, we
had confirmed, or, I was told that it was confirmed that our suspect was the one that had stolen
that revolver, I interpreted all of that to mean that he had a firearm with him.
G: Okay.
E: In his right hand.
G: And what' d you do at that point?
E: Uh at that point I heard all of the shouting, uh, from team members, ordering him to comply,
uh, ordering for them to show his hands, uh, different things of that nature. I started to go to
auditory exclusion so I wasn't able to hear everything that was happening, but I heard, when I
first approached anyways, multiple people yelling, giving him the chance to comply.
G: Okay.
E: Which he chose not to do.
G: What was his response to those orders?
E: Uh, his response was, he first started turn towards the right, away from us, and continued
walking westbound, um, and then eventually, or right after he turned right, he started to quickly
turn left, towards us, in what I interpreted to be him raising the weapon to fire at me, and my
partners.
G: Okay. How did that make you feel?
E: It made me feel like my life was in jeopardy, my partner's lives were in jeopardy, that he was
carrying out to be what I thought was his mission because, he had already committed murder, as
far as I could tell from the information that we received and then, it was a prolonged attack and
that he was just finishing what he was set out to do which was to kill cops.
G: Okay. And did you say anything to the subject?
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E: I did not.
G: Okay. And what happened next?
E: Uh, once I determined that he was trying to kill me, I took aim and I fired, uh, my Department
issued AR15 towards him.
G: Okay. Why was it necessary to fire at him?
E: He was a direct danger to me, my partners, I considered him to be an eminent threat, and if he
was not taken into custody or his threat was not stopped that he would continue to kill people. I
was also concerned that if we did not, um engage our suspect, that he would continue on his
rampage and would continue, uh, directly towards the public that was, in what I believe at the
time was unprotected because there was no perimeter on that line to stop him.
G: How many times did you fire?
E: Uh, fourteen.
G: Okay. Why did you fire fourteen rounds?
E: Uh those were, while I was tracking him, while I was on position until I saw that he was no
longer trying to attack us, I used the threat until it was necessary to stop him. Once I determined
that he was no longer going to continue, I stopped firing.
G: Okay. And were you using any type of optics on your firearm or iron sights?
E: I had an aimpoint red dot.
G: Okay. Do you recall what your sight picture was?
E: Yes. I was aiming at his center mass.
G: Okay. And is that firearm semi -automatic or fully automatic?
E: It's both.
G: And how were you firing that day?
E: Semi -automatic.
G: Okay. Did you move between shots? You had mentioned earlier that you made your way
towards that concrete...
E: So, when I saw him I stopped and was standing there...
G: Okay.
[Summary of pleading] - 23
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E:... and I was firing my rounds, and, if I was moving, I was moving at an incredibly slow pace.
And I think, if I moved at all it would have been at the latter portion, on one of the last shots
because I started to, um, wanted to move towards the, uh, fixed barricade that was in front of me.
G: Okay. Was your shooting position standing the whole time?
E: Yes.
G: Okay. And were you firing left-handed or right handed?
E: Right-handed.
G: Is that your normal firing position?
E: Yes.
G: And did you hear any other Officers fire? Or see any other Officers fire?
E: I did not see, but I heard other gunfire.
G: Okay. Did you see the suspect fire?
E: I did not.
G: Or hear him fire?
E: Did not.
G: Can you describe the background in the direction you fired?
E: Yeah. His background was, um, rolling hills, so there was, from my position it appeared that
there was a hill directly behind him to the north of him.
G: Okay. Do you recall where he was when you first fired at him? Obviously there's an
embankment there, then it goes into a vineyard, do you recall, was he coming down the
embankment, was he in the vineyard?
E: He was in the vineyard.
G: In the vineyard? Okay. Do you have a estimate on how far you were from him?
E: At the time, I estimated seventy-five yards.
G: Okay. And would you describe the suspect's position exposed, concealed, behind cover?
E: He was exposed but technically had moving concealment as he was walking through the
vineyard.
G: And what would you describe your position as?
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E: Uh, partially concealed where I was at and I had some hard cover blocking what would be the
lower portion of me, uh but, being that I was about ten, fifteen feet south of the uh cement block,
I didn't have much cover.
G: Okay. So just for, put into my head where your position, you said ten to fifteen feet south of
that concrete block...
E: Right.
G: ...how far off the Bearcat were you if you recall?
E: Probably about ten feet to the west of the Bearcat.
G: Okay. And how did you have your firearm loaded?
E: I had a, I inserted a fourth magazine I was carrying another hex, uh, black hex magazine that
was loaded with twenty eight so I chambered one so I was carrying twenty eight at that time of
the shooting.
G: Okay. Did you conduct any type of reloads?
E: Yes. I did an administrative re -load at the end.
G: Okay. And what's an administrative reload?
E: That's where you take out your secondary magazine or your backup magazine prior to
ejecting your other magazine. You're assessing the situation, and then when you have your
magazine ready and close, you eject your magazine and stow that one, and then I put my
magazine that had, uh, leftover rounds in a spot that would be, available for me to get but not in,
in my immediate primary pouch.
G: Okay. Did you have any type of equipment malfunctions?
E: I did not.
G: Do you think any other force options were available at that distance?
E: No.
G: Do you know if you hit the suspect?
E: I have no idea.
G: Okay. What happened when you stopped shooting?
E: Uh I yelled for a cease fire.
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G: Okay. And, did the cease fire occur?
E: Yes.
G: And did you make any additional observations at that point?
E: Uh, I did, I started to get our team, uh, re -focused and start working our problem, just like in
our trainings, uh, just because we fired doesn't mean that now it's, it's over so now we needed to
go into the next steps of what would be our, our process. I was starting to, um, think of the
options that we needed to handle next but the primary thing that we needed to handle at that
point was to make sure that there were no, innocent civilians that were hurt or any Operators that
were hurt so I started, what we call our count and condition. And so we started counting that
down, and we got to Joshua Bywater's number and I didn't hear him, so I paused and I looked
around for a minute and then I realized where he was at so I counted his number for him after
visually confirming that he was okay, um, and then we continued with that. And as we're
continuing doing that we eventually hear, um, radio traffic that there's a second shooter, and
possibly a third shooter.
G: Okay. So what'd you guys do then?
E: Uh, we re -moved back into other positions. We took up our other initial position. We moved
back to that wall and we started to, um, work the problem, started talkin about the different area
that we have. I'm relaying, tryin to communicate to my team about their goals, tryin to bring
people's, uh, adrenaline levels down, uh, just tryin to get us back into a position where as soon
it's reasonably safe and necessary to do so, we can start, the other processes. I was concerned,
um, and trying to formulate a plan in my own head, and wait for the all clear sign so that way I
could communicate to Sergeant Kemp so we could go check, uh, our subject's signs of life, go
provide emergency medical care and things of that nature to him.
G: Okay. Do you know if the subject was injured?
E: I have no idea.
G: Okay. And did you guys render aid or did another Officer or team do that?
E: We did not and I have no idea if anyone else did.
G: Okay. Are you aware of any additional recordings, photographs, or documentation from your
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scene that we're not aware of or hasn't been provided?
E: No.
G: Okay. Uh, partner?
L: I'm good.
G: Okay. Anything else you want to clarify or add? Okay it's 1409 hours, goin off.
THE RECORDING ENDS.
(Summary of pleading) - 27