Tulare sheriff: ‘Apparent and obvious’ that deputy’s lethal shooting was appropriate

The Tulare County Sheriff on Monday said it was “apparent and obvious” to him that a deputy acted appropriately Sunday evening when he fatally wounded a man who was attacking a deputy, a sergeant, with a crowbar in East Porterville.

Arturo Moreno, 42, was killed in the deadly incident at Leggett Street and Orange Avenue about 6:30 p.m. Before he was hit by either two or three bullets fired from the sergeant’s handgun, he had struck a deputy with the blade of a shovel, causing a wound to the deputy’s biceps, and slashed the neck of a police dog with the shovel, Sheriff Mike Boudreaux said.

Both the deputy and the dog are expected to recover.

The confrontation between deputies and Moreno, who has a long history of substance abuse and mental health issues, occurred after deputies were called to a home by Moreno’s relatives, Boudreaux said. The family previously asked Moreno not to come to the house and had changed the locks to keep him out.

“I really sympathize with the family,” Boudreaux said at Monday’s news conference. “Our thoughts and prayers go out to them.

“Our office did not create this situation. There is no win in this situation.”

The Porterville Police Department was asked by the sheriff to conduct the investigation of the shooting. Deputies were wearing body cameras during the incident, and Boudreaux indicated he had watched what was recorded.

Before deputies arrived at the home, Moreno was threatening the family members, Boudreaux said. The deputies asked Moreno to come out of the home and were also given a key to the house by family members. During the confrontation, the deputy and the dog were struck by the shovel before officers tried to subdue Moreno with a Taser. Moreno was able to “fight through” the effects of the Taser, Boudreaux said, and efforts in Spanish and English to convince him to give up also did not work.

At some point during the struggle, Boudreaux said the shovel handle wielded by Moreno broke, and he picked up the crowbar. He was swinging it overhead at the sergeant when the lethal shots were fired.

Boudreaux said in 2018 Moreno was sent to prison for a previous assault with a deadly weapon on a deputy, and was released in March. Other contacts between Moreno and law enforcement took place in 2012 and 2013 involving controlled substances.

In September, he was arrested for a parole violation involving the felony assault on the deputy. Boudreaux said his office contacted Immigration and Customs Enforcement, who could have deported Moreno, but the federal agency did not arrive before he was released.

The sheriff said Proposition 47, which reduced many drug felonies to misdemeanors, has “really handicapped law enforcement,” because it is difficult to compel those with serious drug abuse issues to seek treatment Previously, he said, those kept in jail for 180 days could receive treatment to “dry out.” Now, he said the percentage of those who seek treatment for drug issues “are far lower.”