News of the Week
DECEMBER 12-19, 2013
by KELSEY BRUGGER, TYLER HAYDEN, LYZ HOFFMAN, MATT KETTMANN, and NICK WELSH, with INDEPENDENT STAFF
law & disorder
Police Shooting Deemed ‘Justifiable Homicide’ DA Releases Report on Fatal Confrontation with Brian Tacadena
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BY T Y L E R H AY D E N
COU RTE SY SB PD
COU RTESY
The report goes into great detail on here are two very different Tacadena’s criminal history and gang interpretations of the violent affiliation. It notes Tacadena had been in and out of prison and jail over the last scene that unfolded this past fall when a Santa Barbara 31 years, convicted on drug and weappolice officer shot and killed ons charges, spousal battery, resisting arrest, and a number of other crimes. It Brian Tacadena on De la Vina Street. The District Attorney’s Office released a report also describes him as a member of the last week that calls the shooting a “justifiNazi Low Riders, a prison-based white supremacist gang. Tacadena — who was able homicide,” detailing how the officer confronted an aggressive man high on a quarter Latino, a quarter Filipino, and drugs who refused orders to drop a large half white — had multiple gang tattoos, knife he was carrying as he approached including “White Pride As I Low-Ride” the officer. Members of Tacadena’s famacross his chest, Nazi runic symbols, and ily, however, claim that his death was swastikas. Authorities say it’s unclear an example of police brutality, that the if Tacadena was an active member of 46-year-old was mentally ill and could the gang but noted he had recent phohave been subdued with nonlethal force, tographs stored on his cell phone with and that the DA’s report contains major Nazi Low Rider insignia and was wearing holes. boots with Nazi symbols drawn inside. According to the report, on SeptemThough Tacadena’s cousin Frank said ber 1, Tacadena took a bus from San Jose he and other family members weren’t — where he had recently been released necessarily surprised by the shooting from a treatment facility after violating report’s findings — stating the document probation for confronting a man with a is a “nice little package” that only serves to knife — with plans to stay with his aunt convince the community it should think in Santa Maria and “good riddance” later visit his daughto a supposed ter in Goleta. But he “monster” — they took it all the way take issue with to Santa Barbara its accuracy and instead, arriving purpose. Frank around 7 p.m., which pointed to the lack is around the time of video evidence in the report, callthat Tacadena — on ing it more than a medication that treats schizophrenia a little suspicious and bipolar disorder that there is no — texted his daughvisual proof of the ter, “I’m dead.” He account. (Only the LAST STAND: Mourners placed a picture of Brian Tacadena in his younger years at the site beginning of the resurfaced at 9:45 where he was killed. Police say Tacadena was wielding this military-style survival knife, which had p.m., when a witness confrontation was methamphetamine hidden in the handle, as he strode toward the officer. caught on nearby saw Tacadena angrily talking to himself the knife!”), Tacadena seemed to indicate that he surveillance camnear Castillo and Anapamu streets, and again knew he would be shot for not responding. One eras, and the patrol car’s video system wasn’t near Bath Street at 10 p.m. At 11:25 p.m., another witness interviewed soon after the incident told working at the time.) He also asked why so witness, who feared for his safety, saw him look- this newspaper that the confrontation appeared much of Brian’s criminal history was included, ing in parked cars and windows. A coroner’s to him to be a “suicide by cop.” Tacadena was explaining,“His past had nothing to do with him report would later reveal that Tacadena had a found to be holding a military-style survival being shot that night. They didn’t know his past. large amount of methamphetamine in his sys- knife that had 0.2 grams of meth hidden in the They didn’t know who they were dealing with.” Frank lamented that the officer chose to tem at the time, more than 10 times the amount handle. With Tacadena approaching — the incident use lethal force instead of a Taser or other subtypically found in an “average” meth user. Just before 11:30 p.m., the patrol officer — started when he was 66 feet away and ended mission means, pointing to a recent incident who has not been named due to fears of retalia- at just a dozen or so feet — the officer fired five in Santa Ana in which a suspect wielding two tion from Tacadena’s known gang ties — found .40-caliber shots from his handgun, striking samurai swords in public was subdued without him on the block of De la Vina Street and Tacadena once in the upper chest and severing any shots being fired.“They didn’t even give him requested other officers to respond to the scene his aorta. (The other four shots missed, hitting a chance,” Frank said. “He wasn’t a saint; he had with lights and sirens. The officer, explains the nearby walls and trees.) In finding this a “justifi- a troubled life. But people need help, not get report, ordered Tacadena to stop and drop his able homicide,” the DA’s Office cites the “21-foot murdered.” Frank said a demonstration against knife, which Tacadena refused, instead put- rule,” a rough guideline that states that when an police brutality is planned for this weekend and ting down his two backpacks and walking at officer is defending himself from a knife or other that the Tacadena family is meeting with detec“a quick pace” directly toward the officer. When edged weapon, a distance of 21 feet “is necessary tives in the coming days and has discussed the the officer yelled for him to stop (four witnesses in order to effectively stop the threat of injury or possibility of filing a wrongful-death lawsuit. described him shouting, “Drop the knife! Drop death by that suspect.” 10
THE INDEPENDENT
december 19, 2013
news briefs LAW & DISORDER A man who raped a 19-year-old UCSB student after breaking into her apartment in January 2011 has been sentenced to life in prison. A jury found Juan Ramirez guilty in August. Ramirez, 35, also went by the name Jose Flores and has a lengthy criminal record. According to the District Attorney’s Office, the 2011 crime went unsolved for six months until authorities matched Ramirez’s DNA to a sample stored in a state criminal database from his 2010 arrest for child endangerment. Richard Box was arrested this week on multiple charges stemming from a recent sexual assault investigation, police said. Detectives had obtained a $2 million warrant for his arrest before 69-year-old Box turned himself in on 12/16. He’s charged with false imprisonment by force, rape, intimidating a witness by force, assault with a deadly weapon, peeping with a concealed camera, battery, and violation of a court order. The week prior, officers had responded to a disturbance call at Box’s home on the 200 block of Las Ondas. From there, a sexual assault investigation began that involved two victims, police said.
Santa Barbara County and Goleta city officials cited four people at two massage parlors last week after undercover detectives were solicited for sex during an ongoing sting operation. At New Life Day Spa in the 5600 block of Calle Real, 52-year-old Ling Zhang was cited and released for solicitation of prostitution and 54-year-old Guilan Wang was cited for multiple labor-code violations. At Total Relax Massage in the 5700 block of Hollister Avenue, 53-year-old Guo Ping Huang was cited and released for solicitation of prostitution and 52-year-old Lanqing Absher was cited for multiple labor-code violations. Neil Baker, a former UCSB employee well-known for his online tirades against campus administrators, was sentenced 12/10 to felony probation and will be placed in a residential treatment facility by the Veterans Health Administration. Baker, 55, was arrested in August for vandalism and trespassing after he was caught damaging windows at the Engineering Science Building at UCSB. Baker left his position as a senior development engineer at UCSB in 2004 and relocated to Washington. He was arrested in 2010 in Washington after he posted bomb and attack threats against UCSB employees on Craigslist and Facebook.
Police are investigating a 12/14 incident that left a 48-year-old woman, a 52-year-old man, and the man’s dog with multiple stab wounds. According to police spokesperson Sgt. Riley Harwood, the couple arrived at the Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital Emergency Room at around 6:30 p.m. The dog was found outside in the parking lot. All were treated for their injuries and are expected to survive. The ongoing investigation indicates that the victims were on the 700 block of East Haley Street when they were attacked by a single suspect. No arrests have been made.