D.A. Clears Police Who Shot at Suspect

The San Diego County district attorney has concluded that police officers were legally justified in using deadly force against a Southeast San Diego man suspected of killing an officer, police said Wednesday.

The suspect, Arnaldo Devilla Castillo, was shot once as he fled an exchange of gunfire with police in the parking lot of his apartment building. The Sept. 17 incident left Officer Ron Davis dead from three gunshot wounds to the neck and back.

Although Davis’ partner, Robert Anschick, shot Castillo once, medical examiner’s investigators determined that the wound was not fatal and that Castillo committed suicide by shooting himself as he lay under a car, surrounded by police.

The determination was detailed in a letter released Wednesday by the Police Department. The letter, dated Jan. 16, is addressed to Police Chief Robert Burgreen and signed by Dist. Atty. Edwin Miller.

The night of the shooting, Davis and Anschick were responding to a report of domestic violence, police said. A neighbor had reported that Castillo had beaten his girlfriend and threatened to kill himself.

Three other officers, who fired at Castillo before determining he was dead, were also justified in using deadly force, the district attorney said in the letter. Officers Kenneth Fortier Jr., Ben Harris and Sylvester Wade responded properly to a potentially life-threatening situation after hearing a gun fire from where Castillo lay, Miller wrote.

Although the officers fired numerous shots, none struck Castillo, the letter states.

Medical examiner’s investigators said Castillo died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head.