Wounded Marine’s Condition Improves

One of two officers shot by an enlisted man Tuesday at Camp Pendleton has improved sufficiently to be transferred from a civilian trauma center to the base hospital, base officials said Wednesday.

Lt. Col. Thomas A. Heffner, who was shot at least once in the chest with a .45-caliber pistol, was transferred to the base hospital from Palomar Medical Center in Escondido.

Heffner, whose family lives on base, had been taken to Palomar, a regional trauma center, for emergency surgery. He was listed in serious but stable condition.

Heffner was shot just moments after the same gunman killed Lt. Col. Daniel Kidd, authorities say.

Kidd, 40, who lived in Oceanside and is survived by a wife and two children, was executive officer of Marine Air Logistics Squadron 39, a helicopter maintenance unit. Heffner, 43, is the unit’s commander.

Authorities arrested Sgt. Jessie A. Quintanilla, 28, of Riverside, a seven-year veteran of the Corps assigned to the supply section of the squadron.

Officials said Quintanilla’s name had surfaced in an investigation into a gang-related incident on base and that the shooting occurred after he had been summoned to Kidd’s office. Personnel evaluations, which can be crucial to decisions about promotions and reenlistment applications, are underway at the base but officials were unsure whether that played a role in the shooting.