At approximately 4:26pm on April 6, 2019, Sergeant Steve Licon, a CHP motorcycle officer from the Riverside Area Office, was conducting a traffic stop on the 15 Freeway near Nichols Road in Lake Elsinore. He was positioned on the shoulder of the highway behind a Chrysler sedan, when a Toyota Corolla crashed into his motorcycle. Sergeant Licon was airlifted to Inland Valley Regional Medical Center suffering major injuries. Tragically, his injuries were not survivable.
The driver of the Toyota was arrested and charged with second-degree murder.
Sergeant Licon, age 53, was a 27-year veteran of the CHP, planning to retire next year. He is survived by his wife, Ann, and daughters Marissa and Kelly.
At approximately 6:45pm on January 10, 2019, Officer Natalie Corona of the Davis Police Department responded to a traffic collision near 5th and C Streets in downtown Davis. A suspect approached the scene and opened fire, striking Officer Corona. Firefighters from a station directly across the incident scene responded immediately and began life-saving efforts. Officer Corona was then transported to UC Davis Medical Center where, tragically, she succumbed to her injuries.
The suspect ran from the scene, prompting a manhunt throughout downtown Davis. Multiple law enforcement agencies responded to assist, surrounding a home near 5th and E Streets. Just before 1:00am, officers entered the home where they found the suspect dead of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Officer Natalie Corona, age 22, graduated from the police academy in July 2018, and completed field training shortly before Christmas. She is described as an eager rookie who started with the department in 2016 as a Community Service Officer. Officer Corona is survived by her parents. This is the first Line of Duty loss in 60 years for the Davis Police Department.
At approximately 12:57am, on Wednesday, December 26, 2018, Corporal Ronil Singh with the Newman Police Department called in a traffic stop at Merced Street and Eucalyptus Avenue in the city of Newman. Three minutes later he called “shots fired” over the radio. Multiple agencies responded to the scene where they found Corporal Singh suffering from gunshot wounds. He was transported to a nearby hospital, where tragically he was pronounced deceased.
At this writing the suspect is at large. A manhunt involving several agencies is underway in Stanislaus County and neighboring areas.
Corporal Singh (age 33) was a native of Fiji, employed by the Newman Police Department since July 2011. Prior to that he served with the Merced County Sheriff’s Department and Turlock Police Department. He is survived by his wife Anamika and their 5 month old child.
Additional details and funeral information will be forwarded as available.
At approximately 9:48 p.m., on Sunday, November 25, 2018, Riverbank Police Services deputies were dispatched to the intersection of Oakdale Road and Patterson Road in Riverbank for a report of a driver of a silver Cadillac Escalade passed out behind the wheel. Deputies arrived and the driver of the Escalade sped off leading deputies on a pursuit. Deputies deployed spike strips on the Escalade which became disabled at the intersection of Fine Avenue and Cambridge Court in Modesto. The driver fled from the vehicle and began fighting with deputies forcing them to deploy a less-lethal bean bag to subdue him and take him into custody.
Dispatch received 911 calls of a Stanislaus County Sheriff’s Department patrol vehicle crashed into a power pole at Terminal Avenue and Claribel Road. CHP, Deputies, ambulance and fire responded to the scene in an attempt to rescue Deputy Tony Hinostroza, but tragically he died of his injuries at the scene. Deputy Hinostroza, age 45, was responding to assist Riverbank Police Services deputies on the vehicle pursuit when he collided with the power pole.
Deputy Hinostroza was a 19-year veteran with the Stanislaus County Sheriff’s Department. He was assigned to the patrol division out of the Stanislaus County Sheriff’s Department main office. During his career, Deputy Hinostroza served as a patrol deputy, K9 handler, Gang Detective, SWAT team member, and Field Training Officer. Deputy Hinostroza was a Police Explorer for Ceres Police Department from 1990 until 1992 when he enlisted to serve in the United States Marine Corps until 1996. Deputy Hinostroza then worked as a reserve police officer and dispatcher for the city of Waterford before being hired by Stanislaus County Sheriff’s Department.
Deputy Hinostroza is survived by his adult son. Additional details and funeral information will be forwarded as available.
At approximately 11:20pm on Wednesday, November 7, 2018, emergency 911 dispatch received multiple calls of an active shooter in the Borderline Bar & Grill in Thousand Oaks. By 11:26pm Ventura County Sheriff’s Sergeant Ron Helus and a California Highway Patrol Officer arrived on scene and heard gunfire coming from inside the bar, which was occupied by nearly 200 college students. Sergeant Helus immediately made entry into the bar and engaged the suspect. In the exchange of gunfire Sergeant Helus was struck and severely wounded. The CHP Officer was able to pull Sergeant Helus from the bar and he was transported to a local hospital. Tragically, his wounds were not survivable and Sergeant Helus died early Thursday morning, November 8th. Eleven citizens were also shot and killed in the incident, numerous others were wounded. The suspect was later found dead inside the bar.
Sergeant Ron Helus, age 54, was a 29 year veteran of the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office. He is survived by his wife and son.
Additional details and funeral information will be forwarded as available.
Motor Officer Louis Allinson was conducting speed enforcement on Wilshire Boulevard near the Sawtelle veteran’s Home on March 26, 1915. He took off after a speeding motorist along the newly laid road. His front wheel struck a rock, causing him to be thrown from the motorcycle. A witness to the crash transported him to St. Catherine’s Hospital where he died of his injuries the following day. The 37-year-old officer was a U.S. Army veteran of the Spanish-American War and had served with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department for three years. He was survived by his wife Minnie and their two children.
On the evening of March 9, 1975, Los Angeles County Security Officer Murray Olsen witnessed a truck drive through the fence of Olive View Medical Center. He confronted the suspect who was attempting to steal x-ray equipment. Officer Murray was attacked with a knife from behind by a second man. One of the men took his service revolver and then shot him in the chest three times. Responding officers found Murray’s body near his patrol car. Officer Murray was survived by his wife Isabel. The suspect was later killed in a gun battle with LAPD. The Los Angeles County Safety Police were later absorbed by the Los Angeles County Office of Public Safety, which was subsequently taken over by the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department.
On September 17, 2018, at 1:44pm, the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Communications Center received a 911 call regarding a disturbance at a local business located at the 10000 block of Folsom Boulevard in Rancho Cordova. Two officers with the Rancho Cordova Police Department, a contract city with the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Department, responded to the scene. The initial call for service gave no indication that the suspect was armed or dangerous. Upon arriving on scene, Deputies Julie Robertson and Mark Stasyuk were fired upon by the suspect and able to return fire. The suspect fled from the initial scene on foot and was again engaged by other responding deputies at a secondary scene. The suspect was taken into custody and transported to a local hospital, where he was listed in stable condition.
During the initial encounter, Deputies Robertson and Stasyuk were shot by the suspect. Deputy Robertson, a three and a half year veteran, was shot in the arm and is in stable condition.
Tragically, Deputy Stasyuk’s injuries were not survivable and he passed away shortly after arriving at UC Davis Medical Center.
Deputy Mark Stasyuk, age 27, was a four and a half year veteran of the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Department and was assigned to the Rancho Cordova Police Department as a patrol officer. Deputy Stasyuk is survived by his wife, mother, father, and sister. He was preceded in death by his older brother.
Additional details and funeral information will be forwarded as available.
On August 10, 2018, at approximately 9:01am, CHP motorcycle Officer Kirk Griess was conducting a traffic stop on a Saturn SUV on the right shoulder of westbound I-80, near Manuel Campos Parkway in Fairfield, when a white Chevrolet pickup truck veered onto the shoulder and collided with the CHP motorcycle, Officer Griess, and the Saturn. Officer Griess and the driver of the Saturn were both transported to the hospital, where, tragically, both succumbed to their injuries. The driver of the truck was also hospitalized and is currently being questioned by investigators.
Officer Griess was a highly respected 19-year veteran of the California Highway Patrol, with the past 16 years served at the Solano Area Office. Officer Griess also served his country as a member of the United States Marine Corps. He is survived by his wife, Kari, his two daughters, Kadi (25) and Kaci (21), and his son Kole (14).
Additional details and funeral information will be forwarded as available.
In the early morning hours of March 15, 2018, Deputy Ryan Zirkle of the Marin County Sheriff’s Department was responding to a 911 hang-up call when he was involved in a single vehicle collision on Highway 1 near Cypress Road, just north of Point Reyes Station in west Marin County.
Shortly after Deputy Zirkle was dispatched, another 911 caller reported hearing a traffic accident. As Marin Sheriff’s Communications Center had not received a response from Deputy Zirkle, his partner was dispatched to check the reported accident. His partner was first on scene shortly after midnight and found Deputy Zirkle’s vehicle down an embankment where it had struck a tree. County firefighters arrived soon after along with other responding deputy sheriffs. It took 35 minutes to extricate Deputy Zirkle from his vehicle, after which he was air lifted to Petaluma Valley Hospital. In a press conference later that morning, Marin County Sheriff Robert Doyle announced, “Deputies, paramedics, and doctors did all they could but Ryan didn’t survive.”
Deputy Ryan Zirkle, age 24, had been a deputy for 2 and a half years. He is survived by his mother and father, two older brothers, and a fiancé with whom he had recently purchased a house in Petaluma.
Additional details and funeral information will be forwarded as available.
