GUADALUPE — A Guadalupe Police officer shot an unarmed civilian in the process of pursuing a suspect with an outstanding no-bail felony arrest warrant Saturday night. The bystander was pronounced dead at the scene.
The officer was attempting to hit the wanted suspect, located at the intersection of Birch and Obispo streets, and instead struck the civilian in a car in the 100-block of Obispo Street.
The deceased has been identified as Juan Luis Olvera-Preciado, 59, of Guadalupe. Guadalupe Police Chief Michael Cash met personally with the Olvera-Preciado family and offered his condolences and support services.
The California Department of Justice is investigating the sequence of events, and few details are publicly available at this time. The Santa Maria Police Department will conduct the administrative investigation.
— Annelise Hanshaw
