OXNARD : Man’s Fatal Shooting Witnessed by Civilian

The fatal shooting of a 35-year-old man by Oxnard Police last weekend was witnessed by a civilian riding in a patrol car with one of the four officers involved, authorities said Monday.

Deputy Dist. Atty. James D. Ellison said he plans to interview the witness as part of the investigation into the shooting of Nicholas Paul Partee of Oxnard. Ellison declined to identify the witness.

Oxnard officers shot Partee about 10 p.m. Friday after chasing him from Oxnard to Camarillo. The chase ended on Oak Street at Ventura Boulevard, where Partee was shot inside his car after allegedly pointing a gun at officers.

Ellison said he could not comment on why the chase ended there or whether Partee fired his .22-caliber handgun at the officers.

The incident began when Oxnard police were called to the home of Partee’s estranged wife, where he had violated a temporary restraining order, authorities said.

Lisa Marie Partee had obtained the order Sept. 20, one day after her husband allegedly slapped her face, then broke into her house on Curran Street, threatening to yank the phone out of the wall if she called police.

In the request for the restraining order, Partee stated that her husband “has a history of drug abuse and has done drugs in front of our children.”

“I believe that the defendant is a safety threat to our children and his recent violent behavior indicates that he is willing and able to cause physical harm to me,” she stated in court papers.

The officers involved in the shooting have all been placed on administrative leave until a psychologist or the officers themselves decide they are ready to return to work, Oxnard Police Chief Harold Hurtt said.

Because the shooting occurred in Camarillo, it is being investigated by detectives in the Sheriff’s Department’s major crimes section. Ellison said the investigation may be delayed because the same detectives are also handling the slaying of Westlake nurse Kellie O’Sullivan.