A man accused of pulling up alongside a 30-year-old Los Angeles County Sheriff’s deputy and opening fire in an ambush killing at a stoplight nearly three years ago was convicted Monday of first-degree murder.
Deputy Ryan Clinkunbroomer was shot and killed Sept. 16, 2023 in the high desert community of Palmdale as he sat in a patrol vehicle at a red light near the sheriff’s Palmdale station.
Kevin Eduardo Cataneo Salazar, 32, who prosecutors said had aspired to kill a law enforcement officers, was convicted Monday in the veteran law enforcement officer’s death. Salazar pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity, so jurors will return to court Wednesday for the next phase of the trial to determine whether he was sane at the time of the crime.
The downtown Los Angeles jury deliberated about two hours and also found true the special circumstance allegations of murder of a peace officer, lying in wait and firing from a vehicle, along with allegations that he personally used and discharged a .22-caliber revolver. Special circumstance allegations can increase penalties during the sentencing phase.
The defendant could face life in prison if found sane. If he is determined to have been insane at the time of the killing, he would be confined to a state hospital rather than prison.
Clinkunbroomer was a fourth-generation sheriff’s deputy who had become engaged to be married four days before he was killed.
“For nearly three years, we have stood firmly with Ryan Clinkunbroomer’s family and with the dedicated men and women of our Palmdale Sheriff’s Station,” Sheriff Robert Luna said. “Throughout this time, we have remained steadfast in supporting this investigation and doing everything we can to assist the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office in pursing justice and holding this individual accountable for the ambush murder of Ryan.
“Today’s guilty verdict delivers that justice and accountability. While nothing can bring Ryan back to his family, his loved ones, or our Department family, we hope this verdict brings a sense of peace and closure to those who loved him and served alongside him. Ryan dedicated his life to service, proudly carrying on his family’s legacy as a third-generation member of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. We will forever honor his service, his sacrifice, and the badge he proudly wore. Deputy Ryan Clinkunbroomer will never be forgotten.”
Deputy District Attorney David Ayvazian told the Los Angeles Superior Court jury in opening statements that Clinkunbroomer “was doing what he loved — working as a deputy sheriff. He died in the line of duty and the only reason he died was because he was a deputy sheriff.”
Salazar, a Palmdale resident, entered a dual plea of not guilty and not guilty by reason of insanity in connection with the killing. An attorney for Salazar said in his opening statement that the trial would not focus on whether his client fire the shot, but whether the defendant was insane at the time.
Salazar’s attorney argued that his client wasn’t targeting law enforcement officers. Defense attorney George Rosenstock argued his client’s thoughts appear to be “somewhat disorganized” and that the decision to kill was made within seconds. He argued that the panel should reject the allegations of premeditated and deliberated murder and lying in wait.
Both Ayvazian and Rosenstock described the defendant’s apparently irrational behavior on the day of the killing and two days earlier when he was “driving around confronting complete strangers,” the defense lawyer said.
Ayvazian told jurors that following his arrest, Salazar told two undercover operatives in jail during a surreptitiously recorded conversation that he had wanted to kill a police officer for years and described following officers, parking and waiting and playing music to prepare himself.
At a June 2024 hearing in which Salazar was ordered to stand trial, Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Homicide Detective Gustavo Carrillo testified that Salazar acknowledged his involvement in the shooting during questioning at the Palmdale sheriff’s station by detectives two days after the killing. Salazar told investigators that he felt bad and “cried for the (expletive) officer,” according to the detective.
Under cross-examination by Salazar’s attorney at the preliminary hearing, the detective acknowledged that when asked why he had shot the deputy, Salazar responded that it had “started a long time ago before COVID” and that he “began to hear voices in his head.”
During the sanity phase of the trial, the defense wants to call three mental health professionals who examined and interviewed Salazar and listened to statements he made to law enforcement after his arrest and during an undercover jailhouse operation and then concluded that the defendant was legally insane at the time of the offense, Rosenstock indicated in court papers.
A deputy medical examiner concluded Clinkunbroomer died from a single gunshot that entered the back of his head.
After the shooting, investigators used surveillance video footage to identify a vehicle believed to be a Toyota Corolla and then to ask the public to come forward with any information about the vehicle, prosecutors said.
Ayvazian said Monday that among those who contacted investigators was a motorist who testified that he took a photo of the license plate of a vehicle whose driver had aggressively confronted him about seven minutes before authorities believe Clinkunbroomer was shot. The driver identified Salazar in court during the 2024 hearing as the person who confronted him.
The deputy was honored in January with the Castaic Sports Complex being renamed the Ryan M. Clinkunbroomer Castaic Sports Complex.
