Colleagues Give Blood for Patrolman

California Highway Patrol Officer Rafael “Ralph” Casillas was conscious Thursday but remained in critical condition as dozens of people donated blood for the wounded 31-year-old whom one colleague called “the epitome of the highway patrolman.”

“He was always working out, always courteous, always dressed to a T,” said Officer Dennis Yates. Then Yates paused. “Don’t let me speak of him in the past tense, please.”

An eight-year CHP veteran, Casillas was shot in the abdomen, wrist and thigh after a high-speed chase early Wednesday morning. One of the bullets went underneath his bulletproof vest.

Terry James Parker, a troubled 25-year-old Granada Hills resident with a long arrest record, was shot and killed three hours later after firing at three Los Angeles police officers who were searching for him, authorities said.

LAPD officers shot and wounded Parker in 1994 during an incident that also started after Parker was spotted speeding. In both cases, he fled police trying to pull him over, took the same exit of the San Diego Freeway and holed up in the Granada Hills home he shared with his father.

As the investigation continued, officials probed Parker’s long history with the law. He had a lengthy rap sheet, including numerous arrests as a juvenile, and a history of psychiatric problems.

Officials released a probation report showing that he had eight convictions, including evading an officer, discharging a weapon, drunk driving and cocaine possession.

According to a 1994 probation report, Parker did not complete drug and alcohol programs, either because he dropped out or was arrested.

As a youngster, Parker was arrested for marijuana possession as well as using a car without a license and without the owner’s permission. He was placed on probation for a variety of similar offenses.

“It looks like everyone along the way saw this person’s obvious problems. They’re very well documented,” said Steve Cooley, head deputy of the San Fernando branch of the district attorney’s office.

Ten days after Parker entered prison in 1994 after convictions for shooting incidents and drug possession, he received a psychiatric evaluation and was given two mood-altering drugs that he took throughout his 20-month term, according to Department of Corrections officials. He did not receive counseling while in prison, the officials said.

When he was released June 20, Parker was not referred for psychiatric counseling primarily because parole officials did not know how to reach him and because they were attempting to release him to Arizona to live with his father, who also owns a house there, prison officials said.

Parker served about half of his sentence, which was 3 years and 8 months. Days were shaved off his sentence because he worked and attended classes, and he was given credit for serving 151 days in county jail, officials said.

During his prison term, he was kept in the general population except for a brief time in August 1995 when he was removed for a fistfight, corrections officials said.

On Thursday, the LAPD continued its review of Parker’s death by three officers whose police dogs had discovered the suspect on a nearby hillside, said Cmdr. Tim McBride.

Although McBride would not reveal how many shots were fired at Parker, he said it did not appear to be excessive. He said the initial investigation shows that Parker fired first because detectives apparently found a bullet casing from the handgun near the 25-year-old’s body.

Parker’s driver’s license had been suspended four times and was revoked in 1994, after numerous drunk driving arrests, according to the DMV.

His father, James Parker, said he thought the specter of more prison time may have contributed to the actions of his son.

“He was drinking again, and I think he was speeding, which was automatically a violation of parole,” Parker said.

Friends and family members of Casillas described him as a terrific officer and an exceptional man.

Born in Santa Monica in 1965, Casillas was raised by his parents in North Hills along with sisters and an older brother, according to friends.

A deeply religious, conservative man, according to friends, he attended Monroe High School in North Hills and took classes at Cal State Northridge before joining the CHP in 1988. He spent six years at the West Valley station before transferring to Newhall.

After eight years on the job, CHP officials said, Casillas could have had his choice of almost any shift. He chose the graveyard shifts because with the night came the action. “If there was an incident, he was there,” West Valley Officer Dena Yates said with a smile. “He never missed the action.”

At about 5 feet, 5 inches tall, Casillas does not cut an especially imposing figure, but he frequently lifts weights, friends said, and exudes a confidence that arrestees understand immediately.

A cop who “loves arresting people,” Dena Yates said, Casillas is also known for being generous and caring.

It was hard to become his partner at West Valley, friends said, because everyone wanted to work with him. And it wasn’t just other officers who felt that way.

“He was incredibly popular [with everyone] from jailers to tow-truck drivers to officers,” said West Valley Officer Kirk Paulson. “Even most people he arrested were pretty friendly with him. They’d . . . shake his hand by the end of the night.”

Several years ago, friends said, Casillas bought an old hearse, the latest of perhaps hundreds of Halloween decorations he rolled out each year for the neighborhood.

Times staff writers Beth Shuster and Ann W. O’Neill and correspondent John M. Gonzales contributed to this story.