SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Update:
The Sacramento Police Department offered new details during a press conference Friday night on the shooting that led to the death of Officer Tara O’Sullivan.
The suspect, Adel Sambrano Ramos, used two assault rifles, one shotgun and one handgun to fire at officers, according to Sgt. Vance Chandler. He said Ramos placed the weapons strategically throughout his home and fired shots at officers at least 30 different times between 6:10 p.m. and 10:29 p.m. Chandler said Ramos had two additional firearms in a detached garage located on the property.
Chandler said officers fired at least 100 rounds at Ramos, according to a preliminary investigation.
During the press conference, the department showed bodycam footage of the incident. In the video, an officer walks through the backyard and up to the door of the detached garage. He knocks on the door, opens it and begins walking in when shots ring out. An officer can be heard saying "Officer down! Officer down!" and "It's a high-powered rifle," as he takes cover while Ramos continues shooting.
"A couple of things are clear by the facts that we know at this point. The officers were essentially ambushed by the suspect and the result was him murdering one of our community's police officers," said said Sacramento Police Chief Daniel Hahn.
Hahn said it is clear by the suspect's actions that he was intent on murdering more officers.
"I truly believe if officers utilized the equipment they had at the time, prior to retrieving the armored vehicle, we would have had additional officers murdered on that day," Hahn said, adding that squad cars' ballistic doors, bullet proof vests and handheld ballistic shields don't protect against high-powered rifles.
Chandler said two officers went to the home on Redwood Avenue to help a woman retrieve her belongings following a domestic disturbance earlier that day with Ramos. That’s when they learned Ramos had a misdemeanor warrant for an assault from an unrelated incident. When officers went to knock at the door, there was no answer and the door was barricaded, according to Chandler.
The woman also wanted to retrieve belongings from the detached garage. But when the officers went to the garage to retrieve the belongings, they found two weapons and then called for additional officers, Chandler said.
Three additional officers arrived on the scene to assist. Shortly after, Ramos began firing -- shooting O'Sullivan in the process.
A request for an armored vehicle was made at 6:13 p.m., according to Chandler. An officer arrived at the police station at 6:15 p.m., loaded up the armored vehicle and left the station at 6:22 p.m., heading to Redwood Ave. The officer arrived at 6:27 p.m. and coordinated O'Sullivan's rescue. Chandler said they came up with a plan to come through the alley because O'Sullivan was injured and down in the backyard of the residence.
"They developed a very safe plan to utilize the BearCat (the armored vehicle) to safely rescue Tara because they were continually being shot at by the suspect who they believed was armed with a rifle," Chandler said.
He said they breached the rear fence as the suspect continued to fire at the BearCat, which was struck by gunfire multiple times.
"As they got within close proximity of Tara, one officer exited the BearCat and returned fire at the suspect while multiple other officers rescued Tara," Chandler said. "At that point, they placed her in the armored vehicle as the suspect continued to fire at the BearCat."
O'Sullivan was then carried to a patrol vehicle and transported to UC Davis Medical Center. A CHP officer administered aid on the way to the hospital.
O'Sullivan, 26, died at UC Davis Medical Center Wednesday night.
Chandler said investigators will continue processing the scene through the weekend.
Original:
California prosecutors filed a murder charge Friday alleging that a Sacramento man was lying in wait when he used one of two illegal assault rifles to kill a rookie police officer this week.
The charges filed by the Sacramento County district attorney include special circumstances that could subject 45-year-old Adel Sambrano Ramos to the death penalty. However, that decision is months away and Gov. Gavin Newsom has imposed a moratorium on executions.
Sacramento police said they were helping a woman collect her belongings from a Sacramento home as part of a domestic violence call when Ramos opened fire Wednesday evening, mortally wounding Officer Tara O'Sullivan, 26.
They said he continued shooting for hours, pinning down officers until they could use an armored vehicle to move O'Sullivan 45 minutes later.
He's also charged with the attempted murder of a second officer, Daniel Chipp. The standoff with police lasted eight hours, with five officers firing their weapons.
Public defender Norm Dawson said he met briefly with Ramos but can't comment until he receives more details in the case. Ramos is set for his first court appearance on Monday.
Prosecutors allege that Ramos had two AR-15 style rifles assembled from parts to create assault weapons that are illegal in California. One had a pistol grip and telescoping stock, the other a non-fixed magazine and with a pistol grip, according the charges.
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Law enforcement officials have said such so-called ghost guns are a particular problem because they cannot be easily traced.
The special circumstances in the case accuse Ramos of knowing O'Sullivan was a police officer performing her duties, and killing her "while lying in wait," which generally means that he took her by surprise before she knew an attack was coming.
"This is an ongoing investigation and we anticipate that additional charges may be added in the future," prosecutors said.
Court records show that Ramos has a history of domestic violence restraining orders. He was wanted on a bench warrant issued nine days before the shooting for failing to appear on a charge that he battered a young woman last year.
"It would be inappropriate for me to comment any further until I have a chance to review the materials," said Dawson, a supervising public defender. "It will be several months before we entertain entering any plea."
Ramos also has not responded to an interview request from The Associated Press
O'Sullivan is the first Sacramento police officer to be killed on the job in two decades.