Murder Suspect Killed Using Child as Shield

[Willowdared]

Suspect killed, girl wounded in Hemet

By: JOHN HUNNEMAN - Staff Writer
Police pursued homicide suspect

HEMET -- Two people are dead and a 5-year-old girl is hospitalized as a result of a suspected homicide and subsequent chase early Monday that ended when officers returned fire and killed a man who had been holding the child in front of him as a shield, officials said.

Authorities were called to a residence in the 43800 block of C Street just after midnight.

"We got a call from someone who said they'd heard shots and then saw a man flee in a van with two small children," said Riverside County Sheriff's Investigator Jerry Franchville.

A woman, identified as Ana Maria Roberts, 27, of Hemet, was pronounced dead at the scene.

Officers spotted the white van not far from the residence and pursued it for about 10 minutes, Franchville said. During the chase, the man fired an unknown number of shots at pursuing officers, the investigator added.

The van stopped near Harvard Street and Mayberry Avenue and the suspect, who remains unidentified, got out of the vehicle holding a weapon in his hand and the young girl in front of him, the investigator said.

The suspect then fired the weapon at the officers, Franchville said.

Four Riverside County sheriff's deputies and three Hemet officers returned fire, hitting the man several times and also wounding the girl in the leg, Franchville said. None of the officers were injured, he said.

The suspect and the girl were taken by ambulance to Hemet Valley Medical Center, where the man, identified by coroner's officials as Carlos Roberts, 47, of Hemet, was pronounced dead.

Authorities said the girl was in stable condition and the other child in the van, a 3-year-old boy, was uninjured.

The relationship between the suspect, the deceased woman and the two children was not known, Franchville said.

The sheriff's Central Homicide Unit and Hemet police are investigating the shooting.

[Illiy]

What a bast*rd!

[hush29]

I hate people.

[CW Mock]

I'm glad they were able to shoot and kill that POS. Now I hope that poor kid is going to recover completely, and move on with her life.

[Just KC]

This came from our dispatch center. What an awful day that was. We had the chaplain in yesterday for anyone who wanted to talk. The 5yr old girl did lose her leg.

I know all details on the case....and it is all ugly.......my heart just breaks for the 4 children left with no parents now.



And the kicker.......this guy worked for my husbands best friends company.

[Car 4]

There is and always will be a special place in Hell for people who hurt children.

[Illiy]

**update**

California Officers Who Shot Man Holding Daughter Cleared Of Wrongdoing

Posted: Friday, January 25, 2008
Updated: January 25th, 2008 02:39 PM PDT

Story by knbc.com

HEMET, Calif. --

Seven law enforcement officers who killed a man in Hemet have been
cleared of wrongdoing, authorities said Thursday. The man, who had
killed his wife, was shooting at police while holding his 5-year-old
daughter, police said.

Carlos Roberts, 47, died in the Jan. 14 gun battle in the 43000 block
of C Street. His daughter, Marisa, was wounded in the leg and is
recovering, authorities said.

Four Hemet police officers and three sheriff's deputies traded gunfire
with Roberts, and all have been cleared to return to work.

"Our administrative investigation has determined that the three
officers from our department that were involved in the shooting were
within policy," said Hemet police Officer Jeff Pinney.

The deputies were also cleared, said Jerry Franchville of the
Sheriff's Department.

The gun battle started shortly after midnight Jan. 14, when deputies
were sent to investigate a report of shots fired, Franchville said.

A caller reported that someone had been shot and a suspect had fled in
a white van with children inside, Franchville said.

A deputy spotted the vehicle, but Roberts refused to stop, and during
the ensuing chase, he shot at deputies, according to Franchville.

He eventually stopped at Harvard Street and Mayberry Avenue, and as
the officers approached the vehicle, Roberts -- holding his 5-year-old
daughter -- got out of the van, Franchville said.

"He used the kid as a shield," said a deputy district attorney who was
at the shooting scene but asked not to be identified.

As Roberts opened fire, the law enforcement officers shot back,
killing Roberts and wounding the child.

A second child, a 3-year-old boy, was found in the van uninjured,
Franchville said.

Deputies who went to the scene of the original shots-fired call found
his wife, Ana Maria Roberts, 27, shot to death, Franchville said.

Neighbors said the couple had been having marital problems and that
Roberts was upset that his wife went out and left the kids at home.

Franchville said he could not confirm those statements.

"I don't know what pushed him over the edge that day," he said.