Oceanside PD Officer Down

They have not released his name yet.....:(

Quote:

---

Police officer is fatally shot in traffic stop



By Kristina Davis and David E. Graham
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITERS
December 21, 2006

OCEANSIDE – An Oceanside police officer was shot and killed last night while assisting with a traffic stop, officials said.


DON KOHLBAUER / Union-Tribune
Law enforcement members gathered last night in Oceanside near North River Road and Vandegrift Boulevard after an Oceanside police officer was shot during a traffic stop nearby. The officer later died.
The shooting happened about 6:30 p.m. near Gold Drive and Arthur Avenue. The officer was flown to Scripps Memorial Hospital in La Jolla, where he died, Oceanside Capt. David Heering said.

A suspect had not been arrested last night.

The officer's name had not been released.

He had come to assist the initial officer who made the traffic stop about 6:20 p.m., Heering said. He apparently was shot from behind, Oceanside Mayor Jim Wood said. The bullet got past his protective vest, Wood said. It was unclear where the shots came from.

The mayor, a former police officer who came to the scene to lend his moral support, said the officer was recently married and had a 2-month-old baby.


About 6:20 p.m., as the first officer made the traffic stop, she asked for another officer to assist, Heering said.

About 10 minutes into the traffic stop, the same female officer radioed that shots had been fired and asked for additional officers to respond, Heering said.

Heering said police were searching the area and had about two blocks cordoned off. Officers were interviewing several people, including those involved in the traffic stop, Heering said.

“We're going to stay out here all night until we find the person that did this,” he said.

Law enforcement officers from as far as Coronado, National City and Chula Vista were at the scene, as were sheriff's deputies, California Highway Patrol officers, and officers from the county Probation Department, Carlsbad and Escondido.

This is the second Oceanside police officer shot and killed in the past three years. On June 13, 2003, Tony Zeppetella, 27, died.

Zeppetella was shot in the parking lot of the Navy Federal Credit Union in Oceanside during a traffic stop.

Adrian Camacho, a former gang member and drug dealer, was found guilty and is on death row. Camacho shot the rookie officer 13 times.
The officer's wife, Jamie Zeppetella, won a settlement this summer in a wrongful-death lawsuit she filed against the manufacturers of the officer's bullet-resistant vest.

In his memory, his wife formed the Tony W. Zeppetella Memorial Foundation in November. The foundation's goal is to encourage North County youngsters to avoid gangs and drugs. She said the organization will also delve into other charitable acts.

She also said the nonprofit is a way for her and her toddler son Jakob to thank those who helped ease the pain during the most traumatic period of her life.

San Diego Union-Tribune researcher Denise Davidson contributed to this report.

---

One of my former collegues went over to OPD as sworn.....still waiting to find out his status.

Quote:

---

Suspect Arrested In Officer's Killing

POSTED: 9:41 am PST December 21, 2006
UPDATED: 10:04 am PST December 21, 2006

OCEANSIDE, Calif -- Police officials in Oceanside said they have a teenager in custody in connection with the fatal shooting of an officer on Wednesday night.

Authorities also said they had surrounded a residence near Arthur Avenue and East Parker Street in Oceanside and were investigators involved with the case searching the home. Just before 10 a.m. on Thursday, officers took a second juvenile into custody for question who was inside the home on Arthur Avenue.

The 23-year-old male officer was shot and killed Wednesday during a routine traffic stop, authorities said. Police said on Thursday that they do not believe that anybody who was inside the vehicle was responsible for the shooting.

The incident occurred at about 6:15 p.m. on Wednesday after the officer who was slain was called to assist another officer who had made a traffic stop near the 500 block of Arthur Avenue near Gold Drive in Oceanside. About 15 minutes into the stop, the officer who had called for assistance radioed that shots had been fired and asked for additional backup, said Capt. David Heering.

It was unclear if the shots came from inside the car involved in the traffic stop or from somewhere else.

The officer, who was a married father, was transported via Mercy Air to Scripps La Jolla Hospital, where he died, officials said.
"It's a very sad day for Oceanside," said interim City Manager Barry Martin.

Dozens of law enforcement officers from across the county, as well as sheriff's deputies, searched the area for suspects.
"Everyone is very concerned about what occurred," Heering said.
Officials have not yet released the identity of the slain officer or the person in custody.

Check back here for updates on this breaking news story.
Oceanside Police Department policy requires officers in uniform to wear a protective vest when on duty.

---

Prayers go out

:( Rest in peace, Officer. I sincerely hope your widow has all the support she needs to get through this, and that your baby grows up knowing that their daddy was a good man.

RIP brother

http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniont...m22arrest.html

Teen arrested in slaying of cop

Community mourns Oceanside officer

By Kristina Davis
STAFF WRITER

December 22, 2006

OCEANSIDE – A 17-year-old boy has been booked into Juvenile Hall on suspicion of murder in the death of an Oceanside police officer who was shot during a traffic stop Wednesday night, police said.

The bullet that killed Officer Dan Bessant, 25, was fired from a nearby home, piercing his armpit under his protective vest, said Oceanside police Capt. Dave Heering.

Bessant, who grew up in Oceanside and graduated from Oceanside High School, is survived by his wife, Katelyn, and 2-month-old son.

The slaying has devastated a department still grieving over the shooting death of another young officer, Tony Zeppetella, three years ago.

“We have been here before,” Oceanside police Lt. Tom Aguigui said yesterday.

“This is truly, truly a great loss,” said Aguigui, who handpicked Bessant six months ago to join the neighborhood policing team in the northeast Mesa Margarita neighborhood. “We lost a good one. He's going to be truly missed.”

Community leaders expressed grief and rage over the loss yesterday, while also commending Bessant for the strides he had been making curbing gang violence.

“I am outraged and extremely sad for the young officer when he obviously was making a difference in Oceanside,” City Councilwoman Esther Sanchez said.


Oceanside Officer Dan Bessant, 25, was shot Wednesday.
Bessant, who was working his usual swing shift in the area Wednesday, had gone to assist Officer Karina Pina in a traffic stop at Gold Drive and Arthur Avenue at about 6:20 p.m., Heering said.

Pina had pulled over a carload of six people for a minor traffic violation.

About 15 minutes into the stop, Bessant was hit by gunfire that came “from some distance away” on Arthur Avenue, Heering said. Pina, who has been a police officer for eight months, returned fire in the direction of the source of the gunshots.

Bessant died at Scripps Memorial Hospital-La Jolla.

SWAT teams from Oceanside and Carlsbad searched the neighborhood door-to-door and detained several potential witnesses. Police said the 17-year-old boy, who lives in the neighborhood, was one of the people detained during the searches and was arrested after being interviewed by detectives.

The District Attorney's Office has not filed charges yet in the case.

A second boy was also detained for questioning yesterday morning. Authorities would not release any additional information about the boys because they are juveniles.

Several guns were recovered during the search, although it was unclear which homes they came from and if they were related to the shooting, Oceanside Police Chief Frank McCoy said.

Although authorities have not determined whether the shooting was gang-related, Councilwoman Sanchez said the Mesa Margarita community has been concerned about gangs and requested more police officers in the area. Bessant had just returned to work after a short maternity leave and was to meet with Samoan community activist Wayne Godinet, who had planned to introduce the officer to Samoan church leaders who serve as authority figures in the community.

“We are very, very saddened and hurt,” Godinet said. “We feel it is such a loss. This is horrific. It set us all back. I promise he has not died in vain.”

Bessant was key in initiating a criminal abatement project on a house in the neighborhood that was rife with gang violence and criminal activity, Aguigui said.

“Dan had a true passion for problem solving and making his neighborhoods better,” Aguigui said. “Dan was one of those who would flourish wherever you put him.”

Bessant started at the Oceanside Police Department in 2000 in the cadet program, an internship for youths interested in careers in law enforcement.

He got the job with his best friend, Richie Scaggs, who is a field evidence technician at the department.

“He was always there to lend a hand,” said Scaggs, who graduated from Oceanside High School with Bessant. “He really took pride in what he did.”

Zeppetella's murder in 2003 was especially hard on Scaggs and Bessant, who were close friends with the 27-year-old officer. Bessant wrote an online blog after Zeppetella's death describing his friend's funeral procession.

“There were over 1,600 uniformed officers from all over the state and a police procession that was over five miles long. I have never been so proud or motivated.”

Bessant's death left a city on edge and in sorrow.

Del Rio Elementary School was hosting a concert for parents of second-and third-graders at the time of the shooting just a few blocks away.

The families were unaware of the slaying, although they saw police cars as they left, school officials said.
Yesterday, administrators visited every classroom specifically to reassure the children they were safe, said Laura Chalkley, a spokeswoman for the Oceanside Unified School District.

In a voice mail message to The San Diego Union-Tribune, Mayor Jim Wood said: “This is certainly a sad moment at Christmas time. I would hope that everybody prays for the family.

“I would certainly like to explain that these officers put their lives on the line every day. Every day they put on the uniform and go out there. I think they understand and expect it, but still it's a shock.”

Deputy Mayor Rocky Chavez said, “Right now, we've really been focused on the emotional care of his wife and his child and the investigation.”

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger expressed his sympathies to Bessant's family and fellow officers in a written statement yesterday. Capitol flags will be flown at half-staff in honor of Bessant.

At the officer's home yesterday afternoon, a sign on the front gate asked that the family not be disturbed and that their privacy be respected. At an in-law's residence, a number of people had gathered, but the occupants declined to talk about the tragedy.

Since 1850, 78 law enforcement officers have been killed in San Diego County.

Staff writers Angela Lau, Sherry Saavedra and Jose Luis Jimenez contributed to this report.

:(
I was just on ODMP and saw this. May Officer Bessant rest in eternal peace. Thoughts and prayers en-route to the officer's family, friends, community, and department.

Rip :(

Rip

Hundreds pay respects to officer



About 2,000 are expected at funeral

By Kristina Davis
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
December 28, 2006

OCEANSIDE – As mourners filed past the flag-draped coffin of slain Oceanside police Officer Dan Bessant, the same phrase was uttered over and over: “He was so young.”

Many people sobbed openly upon seeing the 25-year-old officer in his dress blues; others exchanged hushed condolences.

Several hundred friends, family members, law enforcement officers and strangers waited in a line at Ambassador Family Church in Oceanside to pay their respects last night.

About 2,000 mourners from around the county are expected to attend a service today.

“I was just telling him a few weeks ago that he was going to be chief someday,” Bessant's grandfather tearfully told Oceanside Police Chief Frank McCoy inside the church.

The family attended a private viewing earlier in the evening, but Bessant's father, Steve, stayed by the casket throughout the night to greet each mourner.

Officers said Bessant's wife, Katelyn, was so emotional that she soon left by a back entrance. Bessant also leaves a 2-month-old son.

“This is the epitome of the all-American family,” said Robert Heyer, a Secret Service agent who never met Bessant but attends church with Bessant's brother, Drew. “We are all appalled by the violence, the randomness and senselessness of it all. The very least we can do is show our support for the family and Police Department.”

Bessant was shot by a sniper Dec. 20 while he helped with an unrelated traffic stop in the Mesa Margarita neighborhood in northeastern Oceanside.

A 17-year-old gang member who lives on Arthur Avenue, where the shots came from, was charged Tuesday with murder, as well as the attempted murder of a second officer and a civilian ride along who were standing nearby.

Prosecutors said the teen, Meki Gaono, admitted to using a scope on a rifle to fire on the officers from 320 feet away.

Mourner Tracy Nolasco, whose husband is an Oceanside police officer, said the death has forced her to think about the possibilities of becoming a widow herself.

“It's always in the back of your mind, but I always felt it couldn't happen to me,” she said. “What happened to Dan made it all seem real.”

The funeral will begin at 10 this morning at New Venture Christian Fellowship at 4000 Mystra Drive in Oceanside, the same church that held the funeral of slain Oceanside Officer Tony Zeppetella in 2003.

Those attending are encouraged to arrive at the church before 8:30 a.m. to avoid road closure delays due to the procession.

The Sheriff's Department will provide deputies to patrol the city until 6 p.m. today to allow every Oceanside officer to attend the funeral.

The Sheriff's Department will pay the overtime costs for the extra shifts.

More than $65,000 has been raised for Bessant's family through donation drives and a memorial fund set up at Washington Mutual banks. People can donate at any branch.

RIP

A sniper. How sick is that. Completely random simply because of his job. Not even motivated by the usual fear of going to jail. I hope the little bastards bunk mate Bubba makes a love doll out of him real soon.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Star Man

RIP

A sniper. How sick is that. Completely random simply because of his job. Not even motivated by the usual fear of going to jail. I hope the little bastards bunk mate Bubba makes a love doll out of him real soon.

---

Not in CA. He'll be a hero in prison. Killing a cop carries a lot of weight with the interior "structure".

Rot in hell shitbag. :mad:

RIP bro