Royal City police shooting deemed justified

ROYAL CITY - An investigation into a fatal police shooting in Royal City cleared officer Rey Rodriguez from any wrongdoing.

"The officer's actions appear to be justifiable and reasonable self-defense in the face of an aggressive and emotional adult male armed with a deadly weapon," Grant County Prosecutor Angus Lee stated in a letter to the Columbia Basin Investigation Team, which ended a month-long study of the case in December.

The team's 400 page report details the events of Oct. 24, when Rodriguez responded to a domestic violence call at a trailer park on Hemlock Avenue Northwest. Rodriguez ultimately shot and killed Pedro Salgado Ceja, 45, after Ceja reportedly came at him with a flat-bottom shovel.

According to a summary of the report, released by the Moses Lake Police Department, Rodriguez arrived on scene to assist in the removal of a 30-year-old woman claiming to be Ceja's wife and requesting help from a New Hope domestic violence advocate.

The woman reportedly told a New Hope representative Ceja had threatened her with a knife the previous evening and stopped her from leaving. She was currently located at a trailer home across the street from the residence in which she lived with Ceja and their two children.

Rodriguez contacted her there and she reportedly told him Ceja had threatened to kill her and the children if she told anyone what had happened.

Following the interview, Rodriguez believed he had established probable cause to arrest Ceja for assault in the second degree, felony harassment and unlawful imprisonment.

While the officer was talking to the woman, Ceja was seen carrying items from a house to a car across the street. Rodriguez said it appeared he was preparing to leave. The officer believed the woman would be in danger if he did not arrest Ceja immediately and chose to approach him alone.

Rodriguez reportedly contacted a Grant County Sheriff's Office supervisor, who confirmed his decision to make the arrest.

Ceja "spoke cordially" with Rodriguez for a few minutes until he was asked about the events of the previous night, after which Ceja's demeanor changed and he denied anything had occurred, according to police investigators.

"At that point, Ofc. Rodriguez told Ceja he was under arrest and took hold of Ceja's arm. Ceja jerked his arm away and stepped away from Ofc. Rodriguez," the report states. "Ofc. Rodriguez drew his pepper spray in an attempt to subdue Ceja. Ceja immediately turned away from Ofc. Rodriguez and covered his eyes."

Rodriguez reportedly chose not to deploy the spray into Ceja's back, believing it would be ineffective, and watched as the suspect quickly moved away from him and picked up a shovel and held it at the ready to swing.

At this point Rodriguez reportedly tried to distance himself from Ceja, running out of the yard before stopping, drawing his Taser and yelling for Ceja to drop the shovel.

"Based on his training, Ofc. Rodriguez felt Ceja was outside the effective distance of the Taser," the report states. "He holstered his Taser and drew his firearm while continuing to give Ceja commands."

Lee's letter examines this decision further, remarking, "with the close proximity of the suspect, and the fact that the suspect was rapidly approaching with a deadly weapon while yelling 'shoot me,' attempting to use his Taser first would have been an unwise gamble by the officer in this situation and would not have guaranteed the safety of either the suspect or the officer ... The Taser was, simply put, not a realistic option for the officer in this situation."

With Ceja about 10 feet behind him and closing, Rodriguez reportedly turned and fired his .40 caliber Glock once. After noticing no discernible reaction, he fired the handgun five more times in rapid succession, stopping when Ceja dropped the shovel and fell to the ground.

"By this time Ofc. Rodriguez had retreated over 175 feet from where the initial confrontation took place," the report states.

An autopsy revealed Ceja sustained three penetrating wounds, three perforating wounds and one grazing wound, and notes each bullet could have caused more than one wound.

One bullet struck a nearby vehicle while another appears to have penetrated both Ceja and the outer wall of a trailer before bouncing off the ceiling and "having expended all of its energy, dropped into a room occupied by a man and his daughter," with no injuries reported.

A toxicology report was requested by Grant County Coroner Craig Morrison as part of Ceja's autopsy. It reveals Ceja had methamphetamine in his bloodstream at the time of his death.

Of the 11 witnesses contacted by detectives during the course of the investigation, nine were cooperative and two saw the entire incident.

One woman who witnessed the shooting out her window reportedly told investigators "she would have liked to see Ofc. Rodriguez use a Taser, but that she wouldn't want to get hit with a shovel either."

Another witness, who was five meters from Rodriguez at the time of the shooting, reportedly remarked "it looked like the officer didn't want to shoot Ceja, but he didn't have any choice," saying, "Ceja almost got him."

Rodriguez was placed on paid administrative leave until mid-November, when he was cleared to return to his normal duty assignment, according to Royal City Police Chief Darin Smith.