D.A. Says School Guard Shot in Self-Defense

The San Diego County district attorney’s office has determined that a San Diego Unified School District police officer acted in self-defense in the shooting death in April of a 17-year-old burglary suspect at a Paradise Hills elementary school.

It was the first slaying by an on-duty officer in the 20-year history of the school police force.

Paul Virgil Frank Marino of the 6800 block of Parkside Avenue in Paradise Hills was shot once in the chest by Officer Ray Cook as Cook and another officer struggled to arrest Marino on April 28, according to police and the district attorney’s office.

Cook had reason to fear for his safety and that of Officer David Helms as they struggled to subdue Marino, the district attorney’s office said Friday in a report written by Deputy Dist. Atty. Michael Pent.

‘No Criminal Liability’

“It is our opinion and conclusion that the involved officer (Cook) bears no criminal liability for his conduct,” Pent said.

A live pipe bomb “capable of inflicting great bodily harm” was found under Marino’s body, Pent said. A folding knife was found a short distance away.

Attempts to reach Cook and Helms for comment were unsuccessful. The district attorney’s findings “vindicate the officers’ actions,” said Jim Pilling, a supervisor with the school district.

“It’s an unfortunate incident, but I feel more compassion for the officers involved,” Pilling said. “They’ve really been sweating it. They were concerned about the district attorney’s findings,” but Cook felt the shooting was justified, Pilling said.

The officers were placed on paid administrative leave for three days after the shooting, Pilling said. They underwent counseling before returning to work about one week after the confrontation with Marino, Pilling said.

The only previous shooting involving a school district police officer occurred in the early 1970s, when an officer fired at, but missed, a burglary suspect, Pilling said.

Chain of Events

Attempts to reach Josie Figueroa, Marino’s mother, were unsuccessful.

Based on the police investigation, Pent constructed the following chain of events:

Cook, 55, and Helms, 46, responded to security alarms about 2:17 a.m. at Zamorano Fine Arts Academy, an elementary school in the 2600 block of Casey Street. The officers discovered a broken window and saw Marino inside the classroom, Pent said.

Cook drew his service revolver, a .357 Smith & Wesson, and identified himself and Helms as police officers, Pent said.

The officers ordered Marino to the floor and the youth at first complied. “Helms dropped to one knee in order to handcuff Marino, when the boy suddenly jumped to his feet and began fighting,” Pent said.

Helms was knocked onto his back. Cook dropped his flashlight but held onto the gun and struck Marino on the left side of his head with his revolver, causing the gun to accidentally discharge, Pent said.

The shot struck Helms in the left forearm and left rib area. Helms was not critically injured because he was wearing a bulletproof vest, Pent said.

“Marino was struggling violently,” Pent said. “Officer Cook was afraid he might lose his grip on his revolver and perceived that Officer Helms was tiring.”

Thought He Felt a Knife

Cook could feel items on the body of Marino that he felt might have been a knife, gun or other weapon, Pent said.

“He felt that both his and Officer Helms’ lives were in danger,” Pent said. “Officer Cook then made a conscious, intentional decision to shoot Marino in the abdomen.”

The bullet entered Marino’s upper left chest and exited from his lower left back, Pent said. Marino continued struggling for a short time but weakened and died.

Besides the pipe bomb under Marino’s body, detectives found items taken from the classroom hidden in his clothing, Pent said.

A search of the boy’s room revealed more than 20 chemicals that could be used as bomb components, Pent said.

“Clearly, Paul Marino was engaged in the commission of a nighttime second-degree burglary,” Pent said. “The officers were engaged in making a lawful arrest. They were entitled to use reasonable force to make the arrest. . . . Officer Cook’s actions were those of a reasonable person under the circumstances.”

Marino’s violent, aggressive behavior had brought him to the attention of authorities with the Grossmont Unified School District, Pent said. One report from school officials said that Marino shouted obscenities and banged his head against metal lockers.

The report said “it took five men to hold him down” and once, during a spelling test, he “slammed his pencil down, almost tipping the table over, and for at least a half hour caused blood to run down his arm, which he loudly slurped and sucked from his arm.”