A report released by the Santa Barbara County District Attorney’s office on Aug. 29 found that five county sheriff’s deputies acted reasonably in May of 2016 when they shot and killed Fernando Castro, 19, outside a mobile home park in Solvang.
Castro’s death was preceded by more than 30 chaotic hours of high-speed car chases, multiple gunfire exchanges, and the kidnapping of a 15-year-old girl, Pearl Pinson, who to this day has yet to be located.
At one point, Castro leapt from a moving car, only to rise to his feet and continue firing at law enforcement officers.
The series of events reached a crescendo when Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office deputies shot Castro 11 times through a car as he appeared to charge their position with the vehicle near the Santa Ynez riverbed.
“It was a very dynamic case,” Santa Barbara County Sheriff Public Information Officer Kelly Hoover said.
The DA’s report ruled the shooting a justifiable homicide.
Crossing county lines
Castro’s killing was one of 15 such officer-involved incidents in Santa Barbara County in 2016, according to the California Department of Justice’s use of force incident report.
That report revealed that those incidents in the county accounted for roughly 2 percent of officer-involved shootings statewide. Hoover said the Sheriff’s Office had only seen two such shootings so far this year, but added that there could have been more in cities’ jurisdictions within the county in that time.
When asked by the Sun what she remembered from the Castro case, Hoover noted the intensity of the incident.
“You get Amber Alerts, but to have the Amber Alert vehicle and kidnapping suspect spotted in [our] area—and to have a pursuit through our jurisdiction in Buellton—it was very intense from the beginning,” Hoover said.
The series of events that ultimately culminated in Castro’s death began in Vallejo on the morning of May 25, when the 19-year-old was spotted forcing 15-year-old Pinson across a pedestrian bridge.
A witness approached the two to find Castro on top of Pinson with a .38 caliber pistol. The witness said Pinson appeared to be bleeding from the face as Castro pinned her against the ground.
“Help! Call the police,” Pinson allegedly shouted. “He is going to shoot me.”
Castro pointed his pistol at the witness, who turned and fled.
A single gunshot rang out.
Castro would not be seen again until more than 30 hours later.
The Solano County Sheriff’s Office began an investigation immediately following the witness’s report. Deputies searched Castro’s residence and found .38 caliber ammo, zip ties, a “suicide letter,” and a makeshift gun silencer fashioned from an automotive filter. Investigators with the DA’s office clarified that the recovered note was undated and had been left in a place where it could not be easily discovered.
California Highway Patrol (CHP) issued an Amber Alert the next day, May 26.
That afternoon, Castro’s 1997 gold Saturn was spotted on Highway 101 near Santa Maria. A CHP officer quickly located Castro and began pursuit, according to the DA’s report. Castro led CHP off Highway 101 to an exit ramp, where he ran at least one stop sign and nearly collided with another vehicle.
Castro briefly stopped his car before slamming on the gas once again.
Back on Highway 101, Castro led the CHP on a high-speed chase, at times driving as fast as 110 mph, the report said.
CHP officers unsuccessfully deployed a spike strip just south of Three Bridges, which Castro bulled through before cutting across a median on the highway. Heading south in the northbound lanes, Castro created distance with authorities, who temporarily called off their pursuit to protect the public, the report said.
Over the course of the next hour, Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office deputies followed Castro by helicopter, while at least one deputy on the ground gave chase only to quickly lose sight of Castro near Buellton.
At 5:17 p.m., Sheriff’s Office Deputy Nathan Flint spotted Castro driving toward Solvang and began pursuit.
Shots fired
Castro “drove recklessly at high speeds through heavy traffic” on Highway 246 toward the town, the report said. He eventually drove off the highway “onto streets and alleyways in downtown Solvang, driving through stop signs and speeding.” Around the area of Molle Way and First Street, Deputy James Kurowski joined pursuit as Castro turned right on Sierra Vista Drive into the Rancho Santa Ynez Mobile Estates.
The Saturn’s driver’s side door then swung open and Castro jumped out of the moving vehicle. Castro hit asphalt, scrambled to his feet, and opened fire at Flint’s squad car.
“Gun! Gun! Gun!” the deputy screamed, as he exited his own vehicle and returned fire.
Flint fired three shots—hitting Castro once in the leg.
Kurowski arrived as Castro fled up Sierra Vista toward Val Verde. According to the report, Castro fired one shot at Kurowski. The bullet struck the deputy’s squad car’s front license plate.
Kurowski did not discharge his weapon.
Castro then ran toward a mobile home at 156 Val Verde. The home’s occupant called 911 and fled. She told authorities that Castro broke her front window and crawled inside.
Castro remained inside the house for about 25 minutes before stealing the occupant’s Toyota truck.
By this time, sheriff’s deputies and CHP officers had taken position around the neighborhood to contain Castro. Several deputies were armed with AR-15 patrol rifles and took cover behind their vehicles and some nearby trees, according to the report.
Castro drove the stolen truck out of the carport and proceeded west before driving onto “a grassy area” and then onto Fjord Drive, parallel to the Santa Ynez riverbed.
The report said Castro drove toward at least five sheriff’s deputies who were in position: senior deputies Dave Robertson and BJ Fortier, and deputies Chris Heidt, Jamie Vanwagoner, and Mike McNeil.
Castro “continued driving slowly,” the report said. He then pointed his handgun out of the open driver’s side window and fired three shots at the deputies, striking a patrol vehicle and one of its tires.
The five deputies then returned fire.
According to the report, the deputies fired 36 .223 caliber rounds from their department-issued AR-15 patrol rifles.
In total, Castro was hit 12 times, including once in the head, neck, and thigh, and several times across his body.
He was declared dead at the scene.
On June 1, Dr. Manuel Montez, a forensic pathologist employed by the Sheriff’s Office, found in the autopsy that Castro died of multiple gunshot wounds to his body.
The Santa Barbara County Coroner’s Bureau determined the death a homicide, which the DA report ultimately found justified.
“The circumstance created a reasonable fear of death or great bodily injury in the minds of deputy Flint, senior deputies Robertson and Fortier, deputies Heidt, Vanwagoner, and McNeil,” the report said.
Staff Writer Spencer Cole can be reached at scole@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in Sep 21-28, 2017.