Officers Cleared in Fatal Shooting

Officers were justified in the fatal shooting of a 48-year-old Newbury Park man last year after he opened fire in the parking lot of a Ventura County sheriff’s station in Thousand Oaks, the district attorney has concluded.

Gregg Wynn Hackett “initiated an unprovoked, potentially deadly attack on the East County Sheriff’s Station and innocent civilians in the area,” Dist. Atty. Greg Totten stated in his 24-page report on the Aug. 5 shooting.

“Each of the officers who responded to Hackett’s shots described a situation where Hackett’s actions were putting lives in jeopardy. Only through extreme good fortune were no innocent persons killed or seriously injured.”

The district attorney’s investigation did not attempt to explain the motives behind Hackett’s actions, but a toxicology report found that Hackett had antihistamine, muscle relaxant and marijuana in his system at the time of his death.

Senior Deputy Dist. Atty. Jim Ellison, who wrote the report, said he could not say if the drugs could have spurred the shooting.

“It would be speculation on my part,” Ellison said. “Certainly, the level of drugs he had in his system didn’t have any significant impact on his ability to form plans and to carry them out.”

The attack began about 9:40 a.m. when Hackett stopped his red Acura in the driveway of the sheriff’s station on Olsen Road and began shooting at the building and people in the area.

Officers from several law enforcement agencies were at the station, and many returned fire. The exchange lasted about 10 minutes before Hackett died of wounds to his chest, abdomen and right arm.

Afterward, investigators recovered more than 900 rounds of ammunition and spent shell casings from Hackett, his car and the surrounding area.

Investigators also found 33 different bullet strikes to the sheriff’s station, along with additional strikes to six vehicles, nearby buildings and a trash can.