Deputy Sheriff Phillip Jesse Campas
Officer: Kern County Sheriff’s Office, Deputy Sheriff Phillip Jesse Campas
Date: 7/25/2021 Location: Wasco, CA FACTORS (1,2,15,18,19,21)
Perpetrator(s) Involved: Jose Manuel Ramirez Jr.
Criminal Activity History/Involved: Yes, Ramirez had felony convictions “involving marijuana, drunken driving and illegally possessing firearms” dating back to 2001. More recently, as a result of two domestic violence incidents in 2020, Ramirez “faced three misdemeanor charges related to the battery of a spouse and willful cruelty for a child.”/Yes, Ramirez illegally possessed firearms and murdered his wife and their two sons.
Mental Illness: None stated.
Substance Abuse History/Involved: Yes, Ramirez’s wife reported finding a bag of methamphetamine in their house on March 26, 2020, which he then took from her and allegedly used soon after./None stated.
Race/Sex/Age: Latino/Male/41
What prompted the initial contact with the killer? At around 1 p.m. on July 25, 2021, Kern County deputies responded to a 911 call of a man with a gun. Upon arriving at the house detailed in the 911 call, the deputies were told the man, Jose Ramirez Jr. was armed and had three victims inside the house with him.
Actions taken by subject toward police: Within minutes of the deputies’ arrival, Ramirez opened fire on them from the house, forcing them to hide behind cover and call for backup. At approximately 2:53 p.m., Ramirez fatally shot Deputy Phillip Campas as he and fellow SWAT team members approached the house hoping to save the victims inside. Besides Campas, Ramirez shot another deputy and injured two others.
Reactions by the police: After several hours of trying to get Ramirez to peacefully surrender, the deputies managed to fatally shoot Ramirez after he climbed up onto his roof while possessing a gun and AK-47 semi-automatic rifle.
How murdered? Deputy Campas was fatally shot while his SWAT team was attempting to rescue people inside a house during a stand-off with an armed subject.
What could have been done differently for the officer to still be alive? As a SWAT team member, Deputy Campas purposely put himself in harm’s way with a known shooter at the scene to rescue what were hoped to be victims that were still alive. There is no indication anything could have been done differently.
Would the officer have been justified to use deadly force before being murdered? While they were certainly justified to use deadly force, it appears that Deputy Campas and the other deputies did not see Ramirez before or even while he was shooting at them.
Outcome for the cop-killer: Ramirez was justifiably shot dead when he came out of the house with weapons in his hands and went up to his roof.
Miscellaneous: Ramirez’s actions show that criminals could care less about restraining orders or prohibitions against their legally possessing firearms.
