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Calif. corrections officer gunned down in front of his home
By Kim Minugh and Andy Furillo
Sacramento Bee
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A Sacramento County sheriff’s deputy is being investigated in connection with Wednesday’s fatal shooting of a correctional officer at his south Sacramento home, according to law enforcement sources.
Sacramento police detectives are investigating the slaying of 39-year-old Steve Lo, found in his garage on Tambor Way just north of Elk Grove city limits. Chief Rick Braziel would not comment on the investigation, nor would Sheriff John McGinness, who said he did not want to jeopardize the case.
Braziel would not discuss details but did say detectives are questioning “many people” in the case.
"(In homicide investigations) we talk to neighbors, we talk to wives, we talk to anybody who might have any connection for any reason,” the chief said. “This is not an exception.”
He cautioned against jumping to conclusions before detectives complete their work.
“The last thing we want is someone thinking we’re going down one direction, when it’s not the direction we’re going in,” he said.
According to sources, the deputy is not a suspect at this time. One source said the deputy was on duty at the time Lo was killed.
No sources were willing to be named, saying they were not authorized to release information on the investigation.
Lo, who was assigned to the California Medical Facility in Vacaville, was shot in the garage of his home on the 8400 block of Tambor Way as he readied – in full uniform – to leave for work Wednesday morning.
His wife, who found his body in the garage, called 911, police said. Lo died later at the hospital.
Police have not revealed a motive.
On Wednesday, some speculated whether Lo’s profession played a role in his slaying, but at least one colleague had trouble believing that Lo would be targeted by anyone who knew him – even a disgruntled inmate.
Joe Gomez, a correctional officer at the California Medical Facility and friend of the victim, said he never knew of Lo having any conflicts at work.
“He’s just so professional. He’d be the last guy to have a problem with the inmates,” said Gomez, a 40-year-old Natomas resident. “The people who have problems with inmates are the people who overuse their authority with inmates.”
Lo was a quiet man who kept mostly to himself, Gomez said. Others at the medical facility were shocked to hear Lo had been the target of violence because “you would never imagine him ever having any conflicts with anybody.”
The fact that a colleague would be gunned down in uniform in the privacy of his home chilled Gomez. As he prepared for his graveyard shift Wednesday, Gomez said he did not open the garage door until he was in the car with the engine running.
“It’s put a little fear in me,” Gomez said. “It’s got me thinking I should carry my weapon (when off-duty) again.”
Copyright 2008 Sacramento Bee