On the afternoon of Sunday, July 25th, at approximately 1:00pm, Deputies from the Kern County Sheriff’s Office responded to a 911 call reporting an armed man, the subject of a restraining order, was at a home near the intersection of 1st Street and Poplar Avenue in Wasco. Screaming and gunfire could be heard in the background of the 911 call.

Responding deputies encountered a woman fleeing the home who stated at least two people inside the home had been shot. The suspect fired at deputies then barricaded himself in the home. The agency’s SWAT team was deployed and a standoff ensued. At approximately 3:00pm the suspect opened fire on members of the SWAT team as they approached the home. Deputy Phillip Campas and another deputy were struck by the gunfire. Both Deputies were transported to a local hospital where, tragically, Deputy Campas succumbed to his wounds.

At approximately 6:28pm, the suspect, armed with an AK-47 rifle and a handgun, climbed onto the home’s roof where he exchanged gunfire with deputies, according to Kern County Sheriff Donny Youngblood.

The suspect was shot and killed in the exchange. Inside the house deputies found three people deceased with gunshot wounds — a woman, age 42, and two males, age 24 and 17. The two male victims were the suspect’s sons, and the woman was their mother, the Sheriff said.

 

Deputy Phillip Campas, age 35, was a five-year veteran of the Kern County Sheriff’s Office, and a veteran of the U.S. Marine Corps who served in Afghanistan.  He is survived by his wife and three young children, age 6, 9, and 13.

On the afternoon of Monday, May 31, 2021, the Memorial Day holiday, San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Deputies were conducting extra patrol for off-highway vehicle violations in the desert area north of Highway 62 and west of Joshua Tree and Twentynine Palms. At approximately 2:00pm deputies attempted a vehicle stop on a motorcyclist near Paxton Road and Imperial Drive. The rider fled on the motorcycle, leading deputies on a pursuit that ended near Dumosa Avenue and Sunnyslope Drive, where they found the motorcycle abandoned. Deputies approached the motorcycle, not realizing they were walking into an ambush. “The (motorcycle) rider started firing at the responding deputies. One of our deputies was struck by the gunfire,” reported San Bernardino County Sheriff John McMahon.  Deputies returned fire and the suspect died at the scene. The Sheriff’s Department did not immediately release the name of the suspect.

Sergeant Dominic Vaca was airlifted to a nearby hospital, where despite all lifesaving measures, “…the gunshot wound he sustained earlier today was too severe for him to overcome,”  Sheriff McMahon said in a video posted to social media Monday evening. Our prayers are with him and his family as we all mourn this difficult time.”

Sergeant Dominic Vaca, age 43, was a 17 year veteran of the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department.

 

At approximately 9:45am on Tuesday, May 11, 2021, Stockton Police Officer Jimmy Inn responded to a disturbance call in the 4400 block of La Cresta Way. The caller reported hearing screaming, saw a woman with a ripped shirt who was bleeding, and appeared to have been assaulted. Shortly after arriving on scene, Officer Inn was in front of the residence when he was shot by the suspect. Another Uniformed Stockton Police Officer arrived on scene and fired his duty weapon at the suspect. The suspect briefly entered his home and returned moments later holding a young child. The suspect began to strangle the child and refused to comply with the officer’s commands. A community member tackled the suspect and as the officer approached, the officer discharged his duty weapon, striking the suspect.

Stockton Police Officer Jimmy Inn was transported to a local hospital where he died from his injuries. The suspect was also transported to an area hospital and also died from his injuries.

Officer Jimmy Inn, age 30, was hired by the Stockton Police Department in December 2015 and was currently assigned to the Field Operations Division. He was also a member of the SPD Honor Guard. Officer Inn is survived by his wife, Tela, who is also a Stockton Police Officer, a 7-month-old son, a 12-year-old stepdaughter, and a 14-year-old stepson.

 

Luca Benedetti was born in San Francisco to Italian immigrant parents and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area. He graduated from Burlingame High School in 2002.  In school he excelled at math, which led him to the Central Coast to attend Cal Poly San Luis Obispo where he studied computer engineering. 

While at Cal Poly, he worked as a bouncer at The Library, a bar in Downtown San Luis Obispo.  It was while working there one night in 2006, that his future wife, Grace, walked in; he claimed that it was love at first sight.  They married in February of 2013 and their first daughter was born the following year, followed by their second daughter in 2018.

While attending college, Luca discovered that his true passion was law enforcement.  He attended the Allan Hancock police Academy and following his graduation, Luca began his career with the Atascadero Police Department in 2008.  In 2012, Luca joined the San Luis Obispo Police Department.  During his distinguished career, Luca held assignments as a Traffic Accident Reconstructionist, Range Master, Field Training Officer and Detective; however, his proudest accomplishment was being a member of the San Luis Obispo County Regional SWAT team. 

Luca was passionate about enforcing DUI laws and was recognized by Mothers Against Drunk Driving with their Top Cop award for years 2010, 2011, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2017 and 2018.  He was also a “driving force” behind the department staffing a full time DUI Enforcement Officer, a position he was excited to fill.

Luca loved cooking, gardening and home improvement projects.  He took pride in growing much of the food he prepared.  His family, friends and neighbors routinely gathered at the Benedetti home and often around the wood fired pizza oven he built, for homemade food, wine, craft beer and cocktails.

Luca was extremely proud of his Italian roots, not only did he wear a gold necklace of the Italian “boot” around his neck, he also tattooed it on his arm, which included the years that Italy won the World Cup. All of that cooking and appreciation for his heritage centered around family and friends, which were always the most important things in Luca’s life. 

On May 10, 2021, while serving a search warrant in the City of San Luis Obispo, Detective Luca Benedetti was tragically shot and killed. He was one of two detectives struck by gunfire that day. Benedetti is survived by his wife Grace, two young daughters Elisabetta and Giovanna, his parents Giampietro and Rita, his sister Carla, and a large extended family.

During his memorial ceremony, Atascadero Police Chaplain Rick Comstock, who officiated Luca and Grace’s wedding, repeated the many accolades Luca received, but he summed him up best with: “We all know that Luca was an accomplished person who excelled in a variety of areas, but of all the things he did, he did daddy best.”

On the afternoon of April 30, 2021, two detained youth assaulted a third youth at the Central Juvenile Hall in Los Angeles. Officer Michael Edward Hall physically restrained one youth, stopping the assault of one of the aggressors. Officer Wall then began to escort the aggressor away when the youth broke and ran. Officer Wall was pursuing the youth when he suffered a cardiac emergency and collapsed into the arms of a nearby officer. CPR was conducted and he was rushed to the hospital. Tragically, Officer Wall passed during emergency surgery.

Officer Wall, age 49, was a 14-year veteran career officer with the Los Angeles County Probation Department. He is survived by his 14-year old daughter, his brother, and his three sisters.

On the evening of February 26, 2021, Officer Jose Anzora of the Los Angeles Police Department was struck by a car while directing traffic on foot at the scene of vehicle collision near Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and Woodlawn Avenue.  Officer Anzora was rushed to a hospital in critical condition, where he remained until his passing on March 3^rd. The driver who struck Anzora remained on scene and cooperated with the investigation.

Officer Anzora, age 31, began protecting and serving the people of Los Angeles in 2011, most recently in Newton Area, where he spent the majority of his career.  He is survived by his wife, Heather, his mother, and extended family.

On December 28, 2020, Fresno Police Officer Angel DeLaFuente passed away from complications related to the COVID-19 virus.

Officer DeLaFuente was a 20-year veteran of the Fresno Police Department. Throughout most of his career he was assigned to the Southeast district of the City of Fresno serving the community as a uniformed patrol officer, District Crime Suppression Team member, and Multi-Agency Gang Enforcement Consortium (MAGEC) member.  In addition to an exemplary career in law enforcement, Officer DeLaFuente was a U.S. Army veteran.  Reflecting on the loss of Officer DeLaFuente, Chief Andy Hall said, “Angel is a prince among men. He started his life as a soldier serving his country and later served his community, he’s always felt that need to serve his fellow mankind.”

At the time Officer DeLaFuente contracted COVID-19, several Fresno Police Officers tested positive for the virus, including another Southeast patrol officer who worked the same shift as Officer DeLaFuente.

Officer DeLaFuente, age 49, is survived by his wife and four children.

On Thursday, February 25, 2021, at 8:58 AM, Deputy Thomas J. Albanese of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department was on patrol on his department motorcycle traveling northbound on Paramount Blvd., approaching Del Amo in the city of Lakewood, when he attempted to conduct a traffic stop on the vehicle ahead of him. As Deputy Albanese entered the intersection, he was struck by a sedan traveling westbound on Del Amo Boulevard. The force of the collision was extreme and Deputy Albanese died instantly.

Deputy Albanese was a seven-year veteran of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. He started his career as a Security Assistant in 2013 in the Aero Bureau. In 2015, he took an oath of office to serve his duties as a peace officer faithfully and was assigned to Men’s Central Jail. He went to patrol at Transit Services Bureau and then transferred to Lakewood Station as a Field Training Officer. Deputy Albanese’s last assignment was as a Pico Rivera Station Motor Deputy but was working overtime at the Lakewood Station when the tragic accident occurred. Deputy Albanese was also a highly decorated veteran of the United States Marine Corps, serving from March 2001 through March 2010, which included four tours of duty in Iraq.

Deputy Thomas Albanese, age 41, is survived by his wife of 12 years, Erica, and his two young boys.

At 10:07 p.m. on Monday, January 18, 2021, Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office Deputies observed an occupied vehicle in a parking lot near Arden Way and Avondale Avenue that matched the description of a vehicle involved in a burglary series. Deputies initiated contact with the single occupant of the vehicle and were able to identify the subject as being on active parole. The subject became uncooperative and fled in his vehicle when deputies attempted to search the vehicle. A short pursuit ensued that terminated inside of the Cal Expo Fairgrounds Complex when the suspect vehicle became disabled after striking a curb. Multiple patrol units arrived on scene to assist the initial deputies. Deputies gave several commands for the suspect to exit his vehicle and he refused. Deputies deployed less-lethal “bean bag” rounds into the suspect vehicle’s back window in an attempt to see inside. A K-9 handler deployed his K-9 into the back window of the vehicle at which time several shots were fired from within the vehicle. Two deputies and the canine were struck by the suspect’s gunfire. Multiple deputies returned fire.

The wounded officers were transported by deputies in patrol units to an area hospital. Deputy Adam Gibson, age 31 and a 6-year veteran of the department, was pronounced deceased at the hospital. A second deputy was stabilized and transported to a trauma center for further treatment. K-9 Riley died at the scene. The sole occupant of the suspect vehicle was pronounced deceased at the scene by fire personnel.

Deputy Adam Gibson is survived by his wife Rachel Gibson and their 9 month old child, his parents Doug and Sandee Gibson, and several siblings.

Deputy Gibson was a United States Marine Corps veteran who served two tours of duty in Afghanistan. Since joining the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office in 2014, he worked in corrections, patrol, and most recently as a canine handler. Deputy Gibson received the Sheriff’s Office Bronze Star for Bravery and a Major Incident Ribbon in 2018.

A memorial fund has been established through the CAHP Credit Union. Donations can be made online: https://cahpcu.org/DeputyAdamGibsonMemorialFund  …or checks can be mailed to:

Deputy Adam Gibson Memorial Fund

PO Box 276507
Sacramento, CA 95827

Detective Jose Cruz Mora of the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office passed away on September 7, 2020 after contracting the COVID-19 virus.  Immediately prior to his death, Detective Mora had been working two separate investigations, a homicide and a kidnapping, which involved interviewing many witnesses, serving warrants, and traveling to Merced and Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.  While in Oklahoma City on August 17, 2020, Detective Mora began experiencing symptoms of COVID-19. On August 21, 2020, Detective Mora was admitted to Clovis Community Hospital, where he tested positive for the virus. He remained hospitalized until succumbing to the illness on September 7, 2020.

Detective Mora, age 44, was a 16-year veteran of the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office. He is survived by his wife and four children.