Almost immediately after being elected Los Angeles County District Attorney in 2020, George Gascón issued a “Death Penalty Policy” promising that his office would not seek the death penalty and, in addition, “will not seek an execution date for any person sentenced to death. . . . will not defend existing death sentences and will engage in a thorough review of every existing death penalty judgment from Los Angeles County with the goal of removing the sentence of death.”
So, it was not a surprise when a visibly emotional Gascón announced at a news conference earlier this month that he was charging the man accused of killing Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Deputy Ryan Clinkunbroomer last September with murder with three special circumstances. If convicted of the charges, Kevin Eduardo Cataneo Salazar will face a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole.
For Gascón, who spent 30 years in the Los Angeles Police Department, starting as a patrol officer and working his way up to Assistant Chief of Police under Bill Bratton, as well as stints as police chief in Mesa, Arizona, and San Francisco, any case in which a law enforcement official is killed is personal. He has worked with police officers for most of his adult life. If ever there is a time he would be tempted to wreak revenge or vent his grief and fury by seeking death against the man accused of killing Deputy Clinkunbroomer, it would be now. Instead, true to his word, he said, “In the face of this tragedy, let us come together as a community supporting one another and standing against acts of violence against those who work night and day to protect us. Together, we will find solace, strength, and, ultimately, justice for our fallen deputy.”
Flanked by the victim’s fiancée, mother, father, brother, and sister, Gascón said, “My heart is broken during this incredibly difficult time for the family of Deputy Clinkunbroomer and the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.”
On the same day of the news conference, Salazar was arraigned on charges that on September 16, 2022, he followed Clinkunbroomer as he left the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Palmdale Station while on duty, to the intersection on Sierra Highway, less than one block away from the station. Salazar then allegedly ambushed and fatally shot Clinkunbroomer from the driver seat of his own vehicle and sped away. Clinkunbroomer was rushed to the hospital by deputies but succumbed to his injuries. He was 30 years old, and had been with the LA County sheriff’s department for eight years.
After a two-day manhunt and a four-hour standoff, Salazar was found and arrested around 5 a.m. on September 18 at his Palmdale residence.
He is charged with one count of murder and three special circumstances, including killing a peace officer, lying in wait, and discharging a firearm from a motor vehicle.
Salazar has pled not guilty, including not guilty by reason of insanity, and has denied the special allegations. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for November 7.
