Names of deputies who exchanged gunfire with Isla Vista killer released

The Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s office on Thursday partially identified the four deputies who exchanged gunfire with Elliot Rodger in the deadly Isla Vista rampage.

Authorities said the deputies have now been cleared to resume their normal duties.

The deputies were identified as A. Marquez, B. Welch, B. Flick and J. Walkerbut. Authorities did not explain why they didn’t release their full names.

Earlier this month the deputies returned to active duty after being placed on administrative leave following the May 23 attack -- a standard practice for officer-involved shootings.

The deputies were involved in two separate gun battles with Rodger, the 22-year-old man who police say killed six UC Santa Barbara students and wounded 13 other people before taking his own life.

Investigators believe one of the rounds fired by the deputies struck Rodger in the hip, which officials said “likely distracted him from his killing spree and put him to flight.”

The department’s investigation into the shootings has not yet been forwarded to the district attorney’s office for review, sheriff’s spokeswoman Kelly Hoover told the Los Angeles Times.

Sgt. Mark A. Williams, with the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office, said no other information will be released until after the entire investigation into the attacks is complete in four to five weeks.

Santa Barbara authorities also declined to provide any correspondence they had with Rodger’s parents, Peter Rodger and Li Chin Rodger, saying the family’s privacy -- at least for now -- outweighs the public’s need to know.

The agency also declined to provide any correspondence with the families of the victims in the killings, also citing their privacy.

Williams also said they were unable to release information compiled by the coroner citing the ongoing investigation and because the reports are not complete.

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