Ventura County District Attorney’s Office concludes that officers were justified in the April shooting death of Cristian Baltazar-Torres
VENTURA COUNTY, Calif. – On Thursday, Ventura County District Attorney Erik Nasarenko released the review of the Apr. 7, 2023, death of 18-year-old Cristian Baltazar-Torres, finding that the officers who shot and killed Baltazar-Torres were justified in their actions.
On Apr. 7, 2023, around 6:02 p.m., officers were dispatched to the 2000 block of East Bard Road in Oxnard after multiple calls about a person threatening people with a knife stated an officer-involved shooting report prepared by the Ventura County District Attorney's Office.
While en route to the scene, officers received updated details from dispatch about the suspect, later identified as Cristian Baltazar-Torres, including that Baltazar-Torres was inside the reporting party's grey Chevrolet truck parked outside in a carport detailed the report.
According to the report, Office Daniel Casse drove his patrol car to the alley behind the condominium complex and two men waved and pointed the officer to a parked grey Chevrolet Silverado.
Officer Jarrod Sheffield arrived behind Office Casse and pulled his patrol car behind the truck, about one car length, and both officers took cover behind Officer Sheffield's patrol vehicle behind the Silverado added the report.
Officer Sheffield then began to give verbal commands to Baltazar-Torres including, "Sir, inside the vehicle, inside the grey Silverado! Roll down the window", but Baltazar-Torres did not respond and instead began depressing the brake pedal inside the truck, activating the break lights detailed the report.
According to the report, officers believed his actions signaled an intent to use the truck as a weapon against them.
Baltazar-Torres continued to ignore Officer Sheffield's verbal commands and Sergeant Rodd Johnson, Officer Randi Vines, and Officer Kyle Hay arrived to the scene shared the report.
The image and caption below come from page 18 of the report.
The report then stated that Baltazar-Torres began to hold the brake pedal down for longer periods of time and officers increasingly believed that Baltazar-Torres either intended to drive forward and pose a risk to the public or that he intended to reverse into the officer's defensive position.
An unknown person told officers at the scene that Baltazar-Torres did not have the keys to the truck and officers began to issue verbal commands to exit the vehicle in both English and Spanish and a Spanish-speaking officer was requested to come to the scene explained the report.
About seven to eight minutes after the arrival of Officers Casse and Sheffield to the scene, Baltazar-Torres opened the driver's side door of the truck with multiple items in his arms, including a knife in his hand, and began to walk towards officers detailed the report.
Officers began to say commands in both English and Spanish to drop the knife, put his hands up, and get on the ground which Baltazar-Torres continued to ignore while approaching officers stated the report.
According to the report, Sergeant Johnson fired his Conducted Electrical Weapon (CEW), commonly known as a taser, striking Baltazar-Torres who began to jump around without releasing the items he was holding and then continued to approach officers.
Baltazar-Torres was about 12 feet from officers when Sergeant Johnson directed Officer Vines to use a less-than-lethal shotgun which hit Baltazar-Torres, causing him to fall to the ground added the report.
The image and caption below come from page 13 of the report.
Officers gave commands to stay on the ground and not to move in English and Spanish, but Baltazar-Torres ignored those commands and rose to his feet while still holding the knife and then started approaching officers again explained the report.
Officer Sheffield then fired one round at Baltazar-Torres who then continued to approach officers, and Officer Sheffield then fired three more times at Baltazar-Torres who then fell to the ground stated the report.
The image and caption below come from page 14 of the report.
According to the report, officers located an extended folding knife near the front left tire of Sergeant Johnson's patrol car and moved Baltazar-Torres into a recovery position while administering medical aid, including performing CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation), until fire personnel arrived at 6:24 p.m.
The image and caption below come from page 14 of the report.
The image and caption below come from page 20 of the report.
Baltazar-Torres was transported to Ventura County Medical Center with multiple gunshot wounds and at 6:56 p.m. was pronounced dead shared the report.
The Oxnard Police Department, alongside members of the Ventura County District Attorney's Office's on-call officer-involved shooting team, began their investigation into the shooting that night and on Oct. 18, 2023, all investigation reports were submitted to the Ventura County District Attorney's Office for determination of justification and potential criminal charges explained the report.
Approximately 500 pages of reports and other documents, about two hours and 15 minutes of body-worn camera video, and around three hours of audio interviews were reviewed by Senior Deputy District Attorney Erin Meister and District Attorney Investigator Dan Horan as part of the review of the incident detailed the report.
According to eyewitness reports collected during the investigation, Baltazar-Torres brandished a knife in the direction of at least three different adults with their children present and attempted to enter two different garages before entering the Silverado owned by another person before the arrival of officers.
An autopsy was performed by Dr. Othon Mena, Ventura County Assistant Chief Medical Examiner on Apr. 10, 2023, stated the report.
According to the report, Dr. Mena located three gunshot wounds to Baltazar-Torres' body and detailed the corresponding injuries caused:
- A gunshot wound to Baltazar-Torres' chest causing injuries to the heart, left lung, liver, stomach, pancreas, and spine
- A gunshot wound to Baltazar-Torres' back
- A Gunshot wound to Baltazar-Torres' right hip where the bullet was lodged in the right buttock
Two bullets were recovered from Baltazar-Torres' body during the autopsy and a third bullet was located at the scene added the report.
Dr. Mena concluded that Baltazar-Torres died from gunshot wounds to his torso and the manner of death was ruled a homicide shared the report.
A white crystalline substance was located at the scene of the shooting and tested positive for methamphetamine and a sample of Baltazar-Torres' blood tested positive for THC and methamphetamine added the report.
The report concludes with the following:
It is the conclusion of the District Attorney that:
A. At the time Officer Sheffield fired his handgun at Baltazar-Torres, Officer
Sheffield honestly and reasonably believed that he and the other
responding officers were under imminent threat of death or great bodily
injury;
B. Officer Sheffield honestly and reasonably believed that the immediate use
of deadly force was necessary to defend himself and the other responding
officers against the danger posed by Baltazar-Torres;
C. Officer Sheffield used no more force than was reasonably necessary to
defend against the apparent danger posed by Baltazar-Torres; and
D. The fatal shooting of Baltazar-Torres by Officer Sheffield was a justifiable
homicide.
